Gretzky The Great lays down Breeders' Cup marker for Casse in Summer Stakes

Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners and Gary Barber's Gretzky The Great found his way to victory down the rail and punched his ticket to the Breeders' Cup with a victory in the C$280,500 (£165,000/€180,000) Grade 1 Summer Stakes at Woodbine on Sunday.

Ridden by Kazushi Kimura and trained by Mark Casse, Gretzky The Great stalked the pace from the break behind Ready To Repeat, who led the field through the first half-mile.

Guided by Luis Contreras, Ready To Repeat maintained a comfortable pace along the rail through the backstretch and into the turn. Gretzky The Great held back in second and was still there as the field turned into the stretch.

With Ready To Repeat in his sights, Gretzky The Great was urged forward and collared the leader as they buckled down for the drive home. Putting his powerful turn of foot on display, Gretzky The Great kicked home and pulled away to a half-length lead.

In the final furlongs, Kimura angled his mount back in toward the rail, and the duo continued to surge to the finish line. Gretzky The Great was well clear of his rivals at the end, crossing the wire three-and-a-quarter lengths in front.

"He's such an amazing horse," said Kimura, who recorded his first Grade 1 win in the Summer Stakes. "He's an easy horse – I mean to control. If I want to do something, I can do anything. When I came to the final turn then came through the final stretch, he had a tremendous explosion. He sometimes was a little bit lugging in, but he's just still a baby."

Following the race, Contreras lodged a complaint against Gretzky The Great, claiming foul in the stretch. Following a stewards' inquiry, the claim was dismissed and the result was upheld.

Gretzky The Great entered the Summer Stakes off a win in last month's Soaring Free Stakes at Woodbine. The Summer Stakes victory ensures that the two-year-old son of Nyquist receives an automatic berth in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf at Keeneland November 6.

"First time out, it was only five furlongs on the [Woodbine inner] turf, then when he won the first time, I was like, 'Oh, that will be a stakes horse for the future," said Kimura, who has been aboard for all of Gretzky the Great's four starts. "And then winning a stakes and now a Grade 1, he's such a nice horse."

Lady Speightspeare powers home in Natalma

Lady Speightspeare had a bit of trouble in the starting gate, but put her six rivals away with ease once underway in the C$253,000 (£150,000/€160,000) Grade 1 Natalma Stakes at Woodbine on Sunday.

The victory awarded Lady Speightspeare an automatic berth in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf at Keeneland November 6. The Natalma, only the second race for the Charles Fipke homebred, was part of the Breeders' Cup Challenge Series.

"That's always nice to see," trainer Roger Attfield said. "When you break your maiden and you're going into a race like this off of going wire-to-wire, you really haven't had any education or anything going into something like this, so it was nice to see that for sure."

A trip to the Breeders' Cup "would be up to Mr Fipke, and I would say knowing Mr Fipke, we probably are going", Attfield said.

Lady Speightspeare was in post six for the Natalma with one horse left to load on her outside when she reared in the stalls. Jockey Emma-Jayne Wilson hopped off and remounted as her ride settled.

Emma-Jayne Wilson: overcame trouble in the stalls to win on Lady SpeightspeareCredit: Tristan Fewings

"In the starting gate, she acted up a little bit, but a little bit was a testament to her intent. Last time she ran, she was such a racehorse," said Wilson, aboard for both starts.

"She broke through the pack early and went to the lead with such intent, I think it was the same thing today in the gate. She knew it was coming. They yelled 'last one.' She was anticipating the doors to open, so she popped up a little.

"But kudos to the gate crew here at Woodbine. They kept her straight and steady, so despite her rearing, she didn't manage to get herself hung up or hurt in anyway, which meant she was able to compete and win today."

Once sprung from the gate, Lady Speightspeare stalked the pace set by Big Big Plans. She swept to the lead in the homestretch and found herself a length in front. Alda, rallying from last, would not let the new leader go without a challenge and barrelled down the outside. Lady Speightspeare, the slight 5-2 favourite over Alda, held off her rival and crossed the wire three-quarters of a length in front.

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