Stein leads Velocitor to victory in $400,000 Prince of Wales Stakes
By The Canadian Press on September 12, 2023.
FORT ERIE, Ont. – Justin Stein rode Velocitor to victory in the $400,000 Prince of Wales Stakes on a wet Tuesday. Velocitor, a 7-1 pick, took the lead from King’s Plate winner Paramount Prince off the final turn, finishing the 1 1/16-mile dirt race in one minute 55.24 seconds on a sloppy circuit at Fort Erie Racetrack. Kaukokaipuu, also a 7-1 pick with Rico Walcott aboard, was second ahead of Paramount Prince, the 5-2 favourite with jockey Patrick Husbands, in the 11-horse field after Armaline, which drew the No. 1 post, was scratched. Stein won last year’s Prince of Wales race aboard Duke of Love. Like he did in both the Plate Trial and King’s Plate, Husbands took Paramount Prince to the lead right from the start. But unlike those two races, this time, there were horses ready to make a challenge later on. Wando, bred and owned by the late Gus Schickedanz, was the last Canadian Triple Crown champion in 2003. The third and final leg of the OLG Canadian Triple Crown is the $400,000 Breeders’ Stakes, a 1 1/2-mile turf event that goes Oct. 1 at Toronto’s Woodbine Racetrack. This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 12, 2023. 9-8
