Published Sep 06, 2025 \u00a0\u2022\u00a0 Last updated 1\u00a0hour ago \u00a0\u2022\u00a0 4 minute read<\/p>\n
<\/a><\/p>\n You can save this article by registering for free here<\/a>. Or sign-in<\/a> if you have an account.<\/p>\n Historically, this is the final week of live racing at Assiniboia Downs.<\/p>\n Advertisement 2<\/p>\n This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below.<\/p>\n THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY<\/p>\n Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada.<\/p>\n Exclusive columns by Ryan Stelter, Paul Friesen, Ted Wyman, Scott Billeck, Lorrie Goldstein, Warren Kinsella and others. Plus newsletters: Gimme Stelter for your beat on the city, The Exit Row for all your Jets news and On the Rocks for curling.Unlimited online access to Winnipeg Sun and 15 news sites with one account.Winnipeg Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition to view on any device, share and comment on.Daily puzzles, including the New York Times Crossword.Support local journalism.<\/p>\n SUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES<\/p>\n Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada.<\/p>\n Exclusive columns by Ryan Stelter, Paul Friesen, Ted Wyman, Scott Billeck, Lorrie Goldstein, Warren Kinsella and others. Plus newsletters: Gimme Stelter for your beat on the city, The Exit Row for all your Jets news and On the Rocks for curling.Unlimited online access to Winnipeg Sun and 15 news sites with one account.Winnipeg Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition to view on any device, share and comment on.Daily puzzles, including the New York Times Crossword.Support local journalism.<\/p>\n REGISTER \/ SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES<\/p>\n Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience.<\/p>\n Access articles from across Canada with one account.Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments.Enjoy additional articles per month.Get email updates from your favourite authors.<\/p>\n THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK.<\/p>\n Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience.<\/p>\n Access articles from across Canada with one accountShare your thoughts and join the conversation in the commentsEnjoy additional articles per monthGet email updates from your favourite authorsSign In or Create an Account<\/p>\n or<\/p>\n Article content<\/p>\n Usually, after the second week of September, the barns close, the trainers and jockeys head off to warmer competition and the annual awards are presented.<\/p>\n Article content<\/p>\n Article content<\/p>\n But not this year, racing enthusiasts. It might be approaching mid-September but in 2025, there are still five weeks and 11 nights of racing remaining on the schedule.<\/p>\n \u201cThis year\u2019s scheduling was strategic as it relates to our horse inventory,\u201d said ASD CEO Darren Dunn. \u201cIt\u2019s still a 50-day meet, as it has been in recent years, but we\u2019ve really tried to manage the inventory to the absolute best of our ability. That, of course, that is something we\u2019ve always done, but the extra length of the meet \u2014 starting earlier and finishing later \u2014 lent itself to horses getting additional rest and maybe an extra start or two. It\u2019s proved to be quite successful so far, and as a result, field sizes continue to be up, and we have a strong inventory going into the last month.\u201d<\/p>\n The Winnipeg Sun’s Daily Headline News<\/p>\n Thanks for signing up!<\/p>\n Article content<\/p>\n Advertisement 3<\/p>\n This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below.<\/p>\n Article content<\/p>\n The fact the season is going deeper into the cooler weather in Winnipeg might deter some punters from showing up at the track. However, there are still seven Stakes\u2019 races ahead of us and three of them are considered \u201cMajor\u201d races.<\/p>\n \u201cI mean, the Majors would be the Futurity (Sept. 30), the Matron (Sept. 16), and the Gold Cup (Sept. 16),\u201d Dunn explained. \u201cThe Osiris (Sept. 10) is a 50-grander and I\u2019m not making light of that, but the Buffalo Stakes (Oct. 1), the Sifton (Sept. 10) and the Distaff (Sept. 9) are Manitoba-bred races. Significant races, but the entries are restricted to Manitoba, Saskatchewan and North Dakota. In my mind, the remaining Majors, after the Derby and the Oaks, are the Futurity, which will stamp the champion two-year-old, the Manitoba Matron, which will decide the older mare of the year and, of course, the Gold Cup, my favourite race of the season, will declare our overall champion and determine the best horse on the grounds.<\/p>\n Advertisement 4<\/p>\n This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below.<\/p>\n Article content<\/p>\n Read More<\/p>\n TAYLOR: Borland’s squash resume now includes coaching hockey players<\/p>\n <\/a> TAYLOR: Avery Pickering: A hockey life filled with opportunities<\/p>\n <\/a><\/p>\n \u201cSo, the Derby and the Oaks for three-year-olds, the Futurity for two-year-olds, the Matron and the Gold Cup for older mares and horses, are the pillars of our Stakes program \u2014 the five races that people put the most weight on. And the Gold Cup is basically the Assiniboia Downs version of the Breeders\u2019 Cup Classic.\u201d<\/p>\n Dunn makes no bones about the fact that he loves the Gold Cup. Last year, Magic Tiger came from off the pace to become the upset \u2014 and repeat \u2014 winner in the 67th running of the $50,000 race.<\/p>\n \u201cI love it because it features the best horses at ASD going the most challenging distance \u2014 the longest distance we run each season \u2014 a mile and an eighth, just like the Derby. Same thing for the Matron, a mile and an eighth. The Gold Cup is the race to determine the absolute best horse of the meet, and it flies a little under the radar after the Manitoba Derby. However, for those three-year-olds from the Derby, that want to take on the older horses, this is Graduation Day.<\/p>\n Advertisement 5<\/p>\n This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below.<\/p>\n Article content<\/p>\n Entries for the Gold Cup don\u2019t close until Sept. 12, but Dunn has a good idea of what this year\u2019s field will look like.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re speculating here, but of course, Judo, for Steve Keplin Jr., should be in the field,\u201d Dunn said. \u201cHe\u2019d won six in a row before losing the Already Dia Overnight Stakes to Malibu SS for Jerry Gourneau and Henry Witt. But still, Judo won the Harvey Warner Manitoba Mile, the R.J. Speers and the FP Stakes and without a doubt will wear the bullseye as the horse to beat in the Gold Cup.<\/p>\n \u201cI think Judo and Malibu SS will go head-to-head, but you know, last year\u2019s winner, Magic Tiger, rallied to a quality third in the Already Dia Overnight Stakes, and he\u2019s the two-time defending champ of the Gold Cup. I\u2019d never put anything past the skill of trainer Wendy Anderson to get a horse ready to win. So, you\u2019re going to get a great price with Magic Tiger, who\u2019s going to try and, you know, win back-to-back-back Gold Cups.<\/p>\n Advertisement 6<\/p>\n This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below.<\/p>\n Article content<\/p>\n \u201cOn paper right now, it appears to be the rematch between Judo and Malibu SS, and that stage is set for a real epic battle. But Magic Tiger is intriguing because I don\u2019t think any horse has ever won three straight Gold Cups. That would be one for the ages and I\u2019m looking forward to it already.\u201d<\/p>\n Meanwhile, with 11 nights of racing remaining, Steve Keplin Jr. would appear to have a lock on the Trainers\u2019 Championship, while Damario Bynoe (40 wins), Antonio Whitehall (37) and Sven Balroop (33) are in a real battle for the jockey title.<\/p>\n \u201cWe still have five weeks of great racing in front of us,\u201d said Dunn enthusiastically. \u201cLet\u2019s get on that horse and ride it to the end.\u201d<\/p>\n Check out our sports section<\/a> for the latest news and analysis. Care for a wager? Head to our sports betting section<\/a> for news and odds.<\/p>\n Article content<\/p>\n Share this article in your social network<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Breadcrumb Trail Links Other Sports Published Sep 06, 2025 \u00a0\u2022\u00a0 Last updated 1\u00a0hour ago \u00a0\u2022\u00a0 4 minute read…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":119805,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[40],"tags":[3004,101,56,54,55],"class_list":["post-119804","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-racing","tag-racing","tag-sports","tag-uk","tag-united-kingdom","tag-unitedkingdom"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/119804","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=119804"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/119804\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/119805"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=119804"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=119804"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=119804"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}Jockey Ronald Ali screams in celebration riding on Magic Tiger. There\u2019s still plenty of time to catch a race at Assiniboia Downs. Photo by Jason Halstead \/submitted photoArticle content<\/p>\n
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