Chiefswood closes in on another title

ETOBICOKE, Ontario – With more than $2.1 million in earnings at the meet, Chiefswood Stable is Woodbine’s leading owner in money won, and the high-quality operation seems on target to capture its second straight Sovereign Award as Canada’s top owner.

“I’m really happy where our outfit is,” said Chiefswood general manager Robert Landry. “We’ve had some success in the U.S.”

The Roger Attfield-trained Tiz a Slam has been the stable star. The massive 4-year-old won the Grade 2 Nijinsky and Grade 3 Dominion Day and is coming off a respectable fourth in the Grade 1 Canadian International.

“We’re giving him a little break,” Landry said. “He’s had a long year. We’re not completely taking him out of training. If he gets to be a handful and is begging to run, we might look for something.”

Landry said the Stuart Simon-trained Bold Script will contest Sunday’s Princess Elizabeth Stakes for Canadian-bred 2-year-old fillies. All four of her races have been on turf, including a second against the boys in the Cup and Saucer Stakes.

“We don’t like to over-race our 2-year-olds,” Landry said, “but she’s doing really well, and this looks like the right spot. She’s handled every surface well, and we’d like to give her a go on the synthetic track.

Grade 3 Bold Venture winner Yorkton is coming off a neck loss in the Grade 2 Nearctic on turf, during which his rider lost his whip.

“If he had won that, it could have made him champion sprinter,” Landry said.

Yorkton, a Simon-trained 4-year-old, will close the year in the Grade 2 Kennedy Road on the Tapeta here Nov. 24.

Rose’s Vision, who won the Aug. 27 Better Talk Now Stakes at Saratoga in his last start, was entered by Simon in last Saturday’s English Channel Stakes at Belmont, but the card that was canceled due to bad weather. The English Channel was rescheduled for Sunday at Aqueduct, but Landry has not committed to running Rose’s Vision.

“We’re looking at a few spots,” he said.

Neepawa, the front-running winner of the Aug. 18 Breeders’ Stakes, is exiting a fourthplace finish in the Bald Eagle Derby at Laurel.

“We gave him a little break,” Landry said. “He’s in Ocala at trainer Mark Casse’s farm.”

Aurora Way, runner-up in last year’s Prince of Wales Stakes, has been retired due to injury. He won his last race here Aug. 26 in a second-level optional claimer on the grass.

“He fractured a sesamoid galloping,” Landry said. “It’s a shame. He was doing so good. We had him in the entries at Keeneland.”

◗ Casse entered two contenders with speed in Friday’s nominal feature, a nonwinners-of-three hybrid sprint for Ontario-sired allowance and $40,000 claimers. Big Shanty wired $40,000 opposition in his last race, and Amen Alley dusted $20,000 stock three weeks ago.