Amis Gizmo makes victory look easy
FORT ERIE, ONT.— Amis Gizmo eased jockey Luis Contreras’ pain Tuesday night.
The Queen’s Plate runner-up took a huge lead at the top of the stretch, then cruised to a convincing victory in the $500,000 Prince of Wales Stakes at Fort Erie Racetrack. Contreras guided the 6-5 favourite to the impressive 51⁄ 2- length win just two days after suffering head and back injuries when thrown from his mount at Woodbine Racetrack.
“I was very worried in the hospital waiting for the results,” said Contre- ras, after his second Prince of Wales win. “I was happy when they told me everything was okay but when they tried to give me two days off I told them I had to ride Tuesday.
“I’m a little bruised but it doesn’t bother me when I ride. I love to be on a horse, and once I jump on the horse everything feels better.”
Amis Gizmo finished the 1 3⁄16- mile dirt race in 1:56.76 on a fast track. Leavem in Malibu was second ahead of Niigon’s Edge.
“Early in the race, I had the opportunity to sit behind horses,” Contreras said. “My horse was so nice and relaxed.
“At the turn, I opened up a little to start to run and I had so much horse. I was handy the whole way. I was looking back to see where everybody was and they were a long way back. I wasn’t worried at all because I knew I had a lot of horse to finish.”
Queen’s Plate champion Sir Dudley Digges was sixth in the eight-horse field, 20 1⁄ lengths behind. Wando
4 remains the last Triple Crown winner, accomplishing the feat in 2003.
“I dropped in on the first turn and saved ground and was right behind the winner on the backside,” said Julien Leparoux, Sir Dudley Digges’ jockey. “But I was kind of empty by the second turn. He didn’t take me anywhere today.”
Amis Gizmo paid $4.70, $3.10 and $2.70 while Leavem in Malibu returned $4.90 and $4.50. Niigon’s Edge paid $8.70.
The third and final Triple Crown event is the $500,000 Breeders’ Stakes, a 1 1⁄2- mile turf event slated for Aug. 21 at Woodbine.
The win was the sixth in eight starts for Amis Gizmo, with the $300,000 winner’s share boosting his all-time earnings past $787,000. Trainer Josie Carroll, the only female conditioner to win the Plate, also earned her first Prince of Wales victory.
“Just a great day, a great race and a great horse,” she said.
Gary Boulanger, the jockey aboard Leavem in Malibu, said his mount simply finished behind a better horse.
“The dirt coming back at him got him a little further back, he jumped up and down quite a bit but didn’t give up,” Boulanger said. “He didn’t run second to a bad horse . . . he’s a nice colt.”
Alan Garcia, who rode third-place finisher Niigon’s Edge, echoed those sentiments.
“He finished well but Gizmo was the best horse today,” he said.