November Fog unlucky in last

ETOBICOKE, Ontario – November Fog will be looking to notch her first stakes in the $100,000 La Prevoyante, one of two 1 1/16-mile Ontario-sired stakes on the final Saturday card of the Woodbine meet.

November Fog has evolved this year into a productive router with tactical speed. Despite competing on short rest, she was an unlucky loser of her last start going seven-eighths in the Eternal Search Stakes, in which she came flying at the end to finish a close third after awaiting room.

“If she had gotten just a little bit better trip, I don’t think they would have beaten her that day,” said trainer Sarah Ritchie, who owns November Fog in partnership with Richard Moylan.

November Fog has worked twice since the Eternal Search on Oct. 29, to Ritchie’s satisfaction.

“She’s doing really well,” Ritchie said. “She’s had a couple of good breezes. I got to space those out a little bit. I’m hoping she should run just as good, if not a little bit better, with more distance.”

Favored Summer Sunday and longshot Royal Wedding ran one-two in the Eternal Search. Both are making their final career start Saturday.

Summer Sunday, Canada’s champion female sprinter in 2019, set soft fractions before holding on by a head after Royal Wedding came charging along the rail after emerging from traffic.

“I don’t think she saw that horse coming inside,” trainer Stuart Simon said. “When that horse engaged her past the wire, she went off away again. She’s showing more and more that she wants to go farther and farther – get in that stride and keep going.”

Trainer Nathan Squires said he had no plausible reason for Royal Wedding’s wake-up race in the Eternal Search.

“All summer, she had no form,” Squires said. “We tried different things with her. We even tried blinkers. Honestly, I thought she had just had enough.

“She had a good 2020. We thought she would have duplicated that this year, but she just wasn’t running. That last race was phenomenal. She just turned it around. If she didn’t get stopped at the top of the lane, she might have won it all.”

Seven other fillies and mares were entered in the La Prevoyante.

◗ A field of 12 was drawn for Saturday’s $100,000 Steady Growth, which will feature a rematch between top Ontariosired 3-year-olds Artie’s Storm and Secret Reserve in their first start against older stakes opposition.

Artie’s Storm was competitive in a mixed bag of stakes on turf and Tapeta before beating favored Secret Reserve in the Lake Ontario on Nov. 19, his first stakes success for trainer Paul Buttigieg.

The Lake Ontario was Secret Reserve’s first start around two turns, during which he set a fast pace before giving way late. He was supplemented by trainer Mike Mattine.