story by Phil McSween / Woodbine
photos by Michael Burns
(This story originally appeared here)
The addition of blinkers and a well-timed rally, helped Souper Sporty (above) score an 18-1 upset win in The Georgian Bay Stakes, the opening leg of the Ontario Sired Heritage Series on Sunday (June 21) at Woodbine.
Reunited with rider Fraser Aebly, who helped guide the 3-year-old filly to a third-place finish versus boys in the 2025 Frost King Stakes, the daughter of Souper Speedy – Sport’n Forty (by Scat Daddy), broke from post position 5 and brushed lightly with Vegas Road leaving the gate.
Aebly recovered well, angling his filly to the fence while seizing 3rd position, behind favourite and pacesetter Souper Diva and second choice Sipping History, who zipped an opening quarter-mile up front in :21.82.
Around the turn, Aebly continued to draft behind the top pair, angling out smartly at the top of the stretch. Trained by Mike DePaulo, Souper Sporty continued to close stoutly on the outside, inching up to Sipping History through and opening half-mile in :44.56.
Inside the 1/16th pole, Souper Sporty burst clear under strong handling from Aebly to win the 5-furlong inner turf sprint for 3-year-old colts and geldings, by 1 3/4 lengths in a final time of :56.86. Souper Diva dug in late to win the place battle, while Sipping History finished gamely for the show placing. Vegas Road was fourth.
An elated Aebly, riding in front of his parents on Father’s Day, was happy to help the Ontario-bred filly capture her first career stakes’ win for owner Zilli Racing Stables.
“She settled great. I kind of let her run out of there four or five jumps.
Soon as those horses got in front of us, she settled right perfect for me,” he said.
“Soon as I kind of got her out in the clear, she had a really good turn of foot for me today. It was nice to see.”
Souper Sporty, making her third start of the layoff, had only her maiden win and the black type show finish in the Frost King, on her nine-race resume prior to breaking through in The Georgian Bay. In her two sophomore starts, she was distanced, so DePaulo opted to make a pair of strategic adjustments.
A 4-furlong breeze (:48.60) on June 5 on the Woodbine training turf was step one, for the bay, who made her turf debut in the Georgian Bay.
“We were thinking she was going to take to the grass,” DePaulo said. “We’ve been training her to go a 1 1/6th.”
“It’s kind of goofy, we put blinkers on her and asked the jock to come off the pace. But it worked so we’ll take it.”
Bred in Ontario by Phoenix Rising Farms, Souper Sporty improved her record to 10 2-0-2, while paying $38.10 for the win. Souper Diva, Sipping History, Vegas Road, Artful Diamond, Money Heist and Hot Stuff Baby completed the order of finish.
Duckduckduck wins Lake Huron
Duckduckduck, turned in a polished performance to score his second career stakes win in Sunday’s $100,000 Lake Huron Stakes, the opening leg in the Ontario Sired Heritage Series at Woodbine.
Ridden for the first time by Pietro Moran, and making his turf debut, the 2025 Clarendon Stakes winner broke sharply from post position 5, showing good early foot, but Moran was content to let the inside pair, Quadzilla and 3/5 favourite Wine After Whiskey battle up front through an opening quarter-mile in :22.16.
Around the turn in the 5-furlong inner turf dash for 3-year-old colts and geldings, Quadzilla (inside) and Wine After Whiskey continued their match race up front, with Duckduckduck tracking 3 deep in the second flight.
Trained by Evette Chartrand-Hoek, Duckduckduck rallied widest turning for home, engaging Wine After Whiskey and striking front inside the 1/8th pole, through and opening half-mile in :45.11.
The 3-year-old bay gelding by Silent Name (Japan) – Peggy O – (by Philanthropist), powered clear, crossing the wire on top by 1 ¾ lengths, in a final time of :56.98.
Duckduckduck and jockey Pietro Moran winning the Lake Huron stakes on June 21 at Woodbine.
Moran, the fourth different pilot to ride Duckduckduck, is his now six-race career, noted the importance of his charge’s alert break.
“Once he broke on top like that and they went up in front of him, we got to stay right behind and down the lane he did it all,” said Moran, who on Father’s Day, competed and bested his father David, who finished fifth aboard Silver Is Best.
Bred in Ontario by Kingview Farms and owned by Sue Leslie, Duckduckduck improved to 6 3-1-1.
“Evette’s marvelous, she’s a tremendous trainer and Charlie (exercise rider Charlie Brown) does such a great job with the horse too,” said Leslie.
“He’s very flexible. He doesn’t really let anything fluster him much. And I give Pietro so much credit because he really got him out of the gate, they left the gate running today.”
“He’s been a little bit shy about that at the gate so I think that helped a lot.”
Duckduckduck broke his maiden last fall in his 3rd career start, winning a maiden optional claimer by a length under Fraser Aebly. He encored by winning the Clarendon Stakes next out, scoring by 2 1/2 lengths with Emma-Jayne Wilson in the irons.
He opened his 3-year-old campaign coming off a winter layoff, finishing a well beaten 6th in an optional claiming event on May 16th. And that tightener worked wonders.
Duckduckduck, listed at 8-1 on the morning line, went off at 9-1 and paid a tidy $20.10 for his Lake Huron win. Post time favourite Wine After Whiskey was second, Gone With Duwyn was third and 39-1 longshot Auntie’s Bambino rounded out the superfecta.
