TORONTO — Desert Encounter overcame a dreadfully slow start to successfully defend his title at the $800,000 Grade 1 Pattison Canadian International on Saturday.
Irish-bred Desert Encounter, at 3/2 odds, sat last at the start but came on in deep stretch to overtake even-money favourite Ziyad and win the 1 1/2-mile turf race in 2:28.62 on a good E.P. Taylor turf course at Woodbine Racetrack.
The win was Desert Encounter's fourth straight.
French-bred Alounak was second in the six-horse field with Ziyad taking third.
Meanwhile Starship Jubilee, with Woodbine's Luis Contreras aboard, captured the $603,200 Grade 1 E.P. Taylor Stakes, a 1 1/4-mile turf event for fillies and mares, in 2:03.29 for her 14th career victory. German-bred Durance, at 16/1 odds, was second in the 10-horse field ahead of Platane, a British-bred 17/1 pick.
And Jesse Campbell, another Woodbine jockey, rode 24/1 longshot City Boy to victory in the $280,900 Grade 2 Nearctic Stakes over six furlongs on the turf. The horse — bred and co-owned by the late Gustav Schickedanz — earned its first win since 2017.
This report by The Canadian Press was originally published Oct. 12, 2019.
The Canadian Press
