Maritimer, winner of the 2011 Coronation Futurity and champion Canadian 2-year-old, makes his first start since March 31 in Dubai in the $150,000 Autumn Stakes (Can-II) at Woodbine Nov. 10.
Facing older horses for the first time in the Autumn, 3-year-old Maritimer has not raced since weakening to finish 11th in the UAE Derby Sponsored by The Saeed & Mohammed Al Naboodah Group (UAE-II) at Meydan. It was the only prior start this year for the dark bay son of Stormy Atlantic .
Equibase lists Seth Benzel as the trainer of Maritimer for owner Ramzan Kadyrov, the controversial Chechen president who was reported to have purchased the Ontario-bred colt in January.
Prior to his sale, Maritimer won the Coronation Futurity and Display stakes in back-to-back fashion last fall to seal juvenile honors in Canada. He is to be ridden in his comeback race by Luis Contreras and they drew post 6 in the seven-horse field.
The Autumn, at 1 1/16 miles on Woodbine's Polytrack, is the eighth race on the Saturday program at the Toronto track with a 4:27 p.m. EST post. It comes two races after this year's running of the Coronation Futurity.
There is one other 3-year-old in the field, Patrioticandproud, winner of the Toronto Cup on turf this summer for trainer Mark Casse and owners Gary Barber and Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners. The Proud Citizen colt returned to action Oct. 13 with a head victory over Stunning Stag in an allowance/optional claiming race on the Woodbine Polytrack.
There's litte separating older horses Alpha Bettor, City Wolf , and James Street, who ran 1-2-3, respectively, in the Seagram Cup (Can-III) Aug. 4. They were also close together in the Durham Cup (Can-III) Oct. 14 won by Delegation with City Wolf second, James Street third, and Alpha Bettor fourth. James Street beat Alpha Bettor by a neck in an allowance race that fell between those two stakes appearances, and City Wolf was fifth in the same event.
Sam-Son Farms' stakes-winning homebred Hotep returns to Poly for the first time since he finished sixth in last year's Autumn, a race won by Straight Story. Jomelo has won three of his past four starts and steps up into graded stakes company for trainer Sid Attard.
$150,000 Autumn Stakes (Can-II, Race 8, 4:27 p.m.), 3 & Up, 1 1/16 Miles (All Weather)
PP. Horse, Jockey, Weight, Trainer
1. James Street (KY), P Husbands, 119, J Carroll
2. Hotep (ON), A O Solis, 116, M Pierce
3. Jomelo (ON), J M Campbell, 117, S C Attard
4. Alpha Bettor (KY), J Stein, 121, D J Vella
5. Patrioticandproud (PA), E R Da Silva, 119, M E Casse
6. Maritimer (ON), L Contreras, 116, S Benzel
7. City Wolf (KY), E Wilson, 121, R Baker
Maritimer was champion Canadian 2-year-old in 2011.
Michael Burns