Proctor Street, Souped Up Win Graded Stakes at Woodbine

United States shipper Proctor Street, a troubled seventh in the De La Rose Stakes last month at Saratoga Race Course, worked out a ground-saving, come-from-behind trip under Pietro Moran before tipping out in the stretch to defeat Eponine (IRE) by a neck in the $144,438 Canadian Stakes (G2T) Aug. 15 at Woodbine. The Canadian, one of three graded stakes Saturday on the King's Plate card, provided Proctor Street with her initial graded stakes win after three earlier graded placings. She had won the ungraded Cardinal Stakes last fall in her first black-type triumph. Eponine made her work to earn the Canadian victory, stalking the leaders in third on the inside and finding room in the stretch. But her advance to take command gave Proctor Street a path to follow from fifth in the field of six, and Proctor Street ultimately wore down Eponine. The winner hit the wire with 1 1/16 miles on Woodbine's firm inner turf in 1:41.40. She paid $4.50 to win as the favorite. "It was a perfect trip. Everything fell in place," Moran said. Lupa (IRE), who set quick splits of :22.48, :46.46, and 1:10.79, hung tough before fading in the final furlong to finish third behind the top two. The Brendan Walsh-trained Proctor Street is a daughter of Darley stallion Street Sense out of the graded stakes-winning Ghostzapper mare Proctor's Ledge. The 5-year-old mare is a homebred for Patricia Moseley and is now 6-2-3 in 14 starts. Souped Up Comes Out Hot in THE Bold Venture The first of the three graded stakes races on the King's Plate undercard, the $134,455 Bold Venture Stakes (G3), proved a thriller, with pace-pressing Souped Up inching past longtime leader Western Whirl for a head victory. Favored Notorious Gangster ran third. Tepid fractions of :23.10 and :46.30 in the 6 1/2-furlong race on Tapeta were advantageous to the front-runners, and Souped Up just managed to get to the front in the closing strides. He was clocked in a final time of 1:17.06, paying $23.40 for a $2 win wager. Ron Sadler trains Ontario-bred Souped Up, a 6-year-old Souper Speedy gelding, for owners Linda Theil and Harri Hosein. Saturday's victory was Souped Up's first at the stakes level and his eighth from 23 starts. "This horse comes every single time to play," jockey Emma-Jayne Wilson said. This story will be updated with a recap of the day's final graded stakes race, the King Edward Stakes (G2T).