Sir Dudley Digges goes for second crown jewel
Queen’s Plate champion colt favourite for Fort Erie test
Two years ago, Ken and Sarah Ramsey’s We Miss Artie was the favourite for the Queen’s Plate. The colt reared up coming out of the gate, and lost all chance at winning, finishing fourth.
From that day forward, Ken Ramsey vowed he would be back, and set his sights on winning the Plate.
He scoured auctions for Canadian-breds with the pedigree and talent to compete in the country’s most storied horse race. He has sent mares to foal in Ontario so their offspring will be eligible for more races here. At a two-year-old-in-training auction in Ocala, Fla., in June 2015, Ramsey, with the help of bloodstock expert Patti Miller, found Sir Dudley Digges, an athletic colt with the pedigree to go the distance on a variety of surfaces. He was bred by Bernard and Karen McCormack of Janetville, Ont.
Ramsey acknowledged it sounds “preposterous” that he would buy a thoroughbred specifically to target that one race. But that’s Ramsey’s style.
“I liked the horse, (Miller) liked the horse, bottom line is we said ‘Hey, this could be a Queen’s Plate horse,’ ” said Ramsey in a phone interview.
“I paid $130,000 for him and we have been indeed trying to win the Queen’s Plate with him ever since.”
After a slow start to his career (it took seven starts to break his maiden), Sir Dudley Digges, named for a 17th century British politician who was sent to the Tower of London for making a remark about the King, checked the big race off his owners’ bucket list, winning at odds of 15-1. Immediately after the race, Ramsey was unequivocal about the next goal.
“We are going for the Triple Crown,” he said. Since it was established in1959, only seven horses have won the Canadian Triple Crown, the last one being Wando in 2003.
On Tuesday, Sir Dudley Digges will continue on Ramsey’s quest when he contests in the series’ second jewel, taking on seven other colts in the $500,000 Prince of Wales Stakes at Fort Erie Racetrack. He is the 2-1 morning line favourite and has drawn post position eight. Run over one mile and 3/16 on Fort Erie’s dirt main surface, Sir Dudley Digges will face Queen’s Plate runner-up Amis Gizmo (5-2) and third-place finisher All On Red (7-2).
“We don’t think the distance or that it’s back on the dirt is going to have any bearing him,” said Ramsey.
The Queen’s Plate is at a distance of a mile-and-1/4 over Woodbine Racetrack’s Tapeta surface, while the third leg of the Triple Crown, the Breeders’ Stakes, is one-mile and 1/2on Woodbine’s turf course.
Born in Artemus, Ky., population 623, Ramsey — who will turn 81 in October — and his wife have created one of the most successful empires in horse racing. Their eponymous Ramsey Farm has been the birthplace to Breeders’ Cup champions and their homebred stallion Kitten’s Joy has topped the North American turf sire’s list for the last four years and has runners worldwide. The Ramseys were voted outstanding owners in the United States in 2014, 2013, 2011 and 2004.
Around the racetrack, Ramsey is known as the small-town boy with an outsize character who has forged his own path to the top of the game. His face beams with pride every time he has his photo taken in the winner’s circle — which is often. As of Friday, horses owned by Ken and Sarah Ramsey have won 69 races from 339 starts and $3.6 million in earnings this year.
There is also a fiercely competitive streak in Ramsey that is admittedly polarizing.
In a recent interview with thoroughbred racing site, Thoroughbred Racing Commentary, Ramsey said he was “devastated and disappointed” that none of his four runners at this year’s prestigious Royal Ascot were able to win.
He continued to say when he feels horses are underperforming, he’s not afraid move his them from one barn to another, and his trainers must maintain a 20-per- cent win rate with his horses — which is high — or else he fires them.
“I am not very popular with a lot people because a lot of people don’t see it my way, but, if I am running the show, we are going to do it my way,” he told the website.
Win or lose on Tuesday night, Canada has not seen the last of the Ramsey name.
This year, seven of their mares foaled in Ontario and were bred back to We Miss Artie, who is standing at stud in Uxbridge, Ont., all with the goal of repeating Sir Dudley Digges’ achievement.
“We are loading up the pipeline for success down the road,” said Ramsey. “The future definitely has Woodbine and Canada on our radar screen.”