Girl power has been on display in the King's Plate, with 39 fillies—regularly outnumbered by males in the entries—capturing the historic 1 1/4-mile race, which will have its 166th running Aug. 16. That includes six females since Woodbine began running the King's Plate over a synthetic surface in 2007, topped last year with Caitlinhergrtness.
On Saturday, No Time gets her crack at it in the CA$1 million contest named in honor of the current British monarch. The King's Plate is the oldest continuously run stakes race in North America and the first leg of the Canadian Triple Crown for 3-year-olds bred in that country.
She faces 12 males, including many battle-tested in Canadian stakes, plus a two-time United States Stakes winner in Tom's Magic and a last-to-first debut winner in Stronach Stables' Runaway Again.
A daughter of Taylor Made Stallions' Not This Time , No Time proved superior over Canadian-bred 3-year-old fillies in romping by 3 3/4 lengths in the July 20 Woodbine Oaks for Hall of Famer trainer Mark Casse and Hall of Fame jockey John Velazquez. She clocked 1 1/8 miles in 1:50.14, faster than all of the males ran in the Plate Trial a half-hour earlier.
Casse is a three-time winner of the Plate, as is No Time's owner, Gary Barber, either solely or in partnership. The duo last struck in 2023 with Paramount Prince—who remains in training and is a horse Barber races with Michael Langlois—before earlier wins with the fillies Wonder Gadot (2018) and Lexie Lou (2014), fillies Barber owned solely.
Velazquez piloted Wonder Gadot to her Plate victory.
No Time showed a new dimension in the Woodbine Oaks, her first stakes win, rallying from behind rivals after a quick pace developed. Her two other victories had come on the lead.
Yawen Wu's Sedburys Ghost, a chestnut 3-year-old Shaman Ghost gelding trained by Barbara Minshall, captured the Plate Trial at odds of 7-1 under Ryan Munger, who is excited for a return mount in the King's Plate.
"These are the things you live for," he said. "You know, I don't want to tell my grandkids I won a maiden on a Thursday night. I want to tell my grandkids, 'Hey, I won the Plate.'"
In the Plate Trial, Sedburys Ghost outran favored Notorious Gangster and second favorite Scorching, both of whom are back in Saturday's race.
Notorious Gangster encountered traffic in the Plate Trail before unleashing his usual rally.
"I thought it was a huge effort," said trainer Josie Carroll, a three-time Plate winner. "He got himself in a little bit of a jackpot there. As soon as he got out, he did what he does, which is just be a game, game horse."
Skipping the Plate Trial was Al and Bill Ulwelling's Mansetti, who defeated Scorching, Sedburys Ghost, and others in winning the June 28 Marine Stakes for trainer Kevin Attard.
Attard won the Plate last year with Caitlinhergrtness after his initial success with another filly, Moira, in 2022.
The Ulwellings and Attard are also represented in the Plate by Faber, and Attard runs a third starter in Dewolf for X-Men Racing IV, Canuck Racing Club, Madaket Stables, and SF Racing.
A leading threat to No Time would appear to be Tom's Magic, a dual U.S. stakes winner in unrestricted company on grass for trainer Mike Stidham and owners CJ Thoroughbreds and Mo Speed Racing.
The Sid Attard-conditioned Runaway Again also commands attention after a 9 1/4-length, last-to-first debut in a 1 1/16-mile race on Tapeta July 13 at Woodbine.
