Speedy Soul to try her hand at routing

ETOBICOKE, Ontario – Joey Gee Thoroughbreds and trainer Andrew Smith won last year’s Victorian Queen Stakes with Line of Vision. They bypassed the six-furlong sprint for Ontario-sired 2-yearold fillies last Saturday with the unbeaten Speedy Soul, who will travel 1 1/16 miles in her next outing.

Speedy Soul won both of her starts from off the pace, a six-furlong Ontario-sired maiden special weight and the restricted Muskoka Stakes. In the 6 1/2-furlong Muskoka, she rode an outside bias to a fourlength score over Preferred Guest and Silent Mistake, who subsequently captured the Victorian Queen.

“We want to stretch her out, and not cut her back,” Smith said. “She had a little problem with shins. We opted to miss [the Victorian Queen]. I think she’s a pretty talented filly. I haven’t had her 100 percent yet. I don’t think she’s totally fit. The two races she won, she did it on raw ability, really. She’s a big, rangy filly. On looks alone, you’d think she’d run on.”

By hot freshman sire Souper Speedy, Speedy Soul is nominated to the Grade 3 Mazarine Stakes on Oct. 6. She could meet Canadian-breds in the $225,000 Princess Elizabeth Stakes on Nov. 4. Both are at 1 1/16 miles

“We’re thinking Mazarine, but we don’t know yet,” Smith said. “Probably the ideal race is the Princess Elizabeth.”

Line of Vision will see action in Saturday’s $125,000 Ontario Damsel Stakes, a one-mile turf route for Ontario-bred 3-yearold fillies.

Leading Ontario 2-year-old sire Souper Speedy would have had his third stakes winner if Souper Hot had prevailed in last Sunday’s Bull Page, but he lost by a neck after opening up a clear lead in the stretch.

Speedy Soul and Blessed Two gave Souper Speedy a sweep of two lucrative stakes for graduates of local yearling sales on Aug. 29. Blessed Two took the Simcoe that day, and went on to finish third in the Bull Page.

Nine-year-old Souper Speedy stood for a $3,000 stud fee this year at John Carey’s T.C. Westmeath Stud Farm.

◗ Friday’s two one-mile maiden special weight races for 2-year-olds on turf both drew large fields.

Twelve fillies made it into the body of the sixth, including I’ll Take the Gold, who was a front-running second in a similar spot when adding Lasix Sept. 7. Peut Etre and Hastal avistababy are also exiting an improved performance.

The eighth race lured 10 males, including the debuting Mo Speed, a $500,000 Saratoga yearling purchase by the popular Uncle Mo.