2008 Queen's Plate Entries

Thursday morning, June 19, the post positions were selected for the 149th running of the $1,000,000 Queen's Plate during a breakfast ceremony. A field of 15 Canadian-bred three-year-olds will go to post on Sunday in the 1 1/4 mile classic, each carrying 126 pounds. The Queen's Plate is the first race of Canada's Triple Crown, which continues with the Prince of Wales Stakes at Fort Erie on July 13 and the Breeders' Stakes at Woodbine on August 3. The race will be shown on CBC in Canada from 4:30-5:30PM ET, with the Plate going off at 5:06PM. The Queen's Plate will also be simulcast to many locations throughout the United States.

The selection order for post positions was drawn first, via the traditional pill-pull, followed by the choosing of post positions by the connections for each horse, a system which has been in place since 1998.

The likely favorite, listed at 3-1 on the morning line, is Not Bourbon, who goes into the Plate off a 2-race winning streak, including a neck victory over Solitaire in the Plate Trial in his final prep. Trainer Roger Attfield chose Post 13, saying "In a perfect world, we probably would have taken right in the middle of the field. I'm happy with the 13-hole. I'm not superstitious. I think it will be fine, the way he runs. It gets him time to sort it out and see what's going on inside of him. I was happy with his Trial. He carried the weight. He did it well. He had to probably move a bit earlier than we needed to because we did think that grey horse (odds-on Harlem Rocker) might be coming at that point in time." Jono Jones, who has been aboard in all 9 of his starts, will be in the irons once again.

Leading the "foreign" contingent is H. James Bond trainee Solitaire, 7-2 second choice on the morning line, who will have local rider Robert Landry aboard on Sunday. Bond chose post 10, saying "We wanted to be outside rather than inside. We just hope he improves (from his second-place finish in the Plate Trial). He's doing real well. He has to get another furlong, but he has the pedigree. He's trained real well for the race and we just hope the racing gods are on our side."

Stronach Stables' Ginger Brew, a dominating six-length winner of the Woodbine Oaks, presented by Budweiser, on June 8, will try to become just the 34th filly since 1860 to claim the 'Gallop for the Guineas' but the first since 2001, when Dancethruthedawn completed the Oaks-Plate double. With a victory, Ginger Brew, the third choice at 4-1, would also become only the fifth filly since 1956 to capture both the Oaks and Plate. Trainer Brian Lynch chose post 10, and she will have Javier Castellano aboard.

Below are the entries for the 2008 Queen's Plate with post positions, morning line odds, trainer, and jockey. Free past performances are available here from BRISnet.com.