Casse pair ready for Ricoh Woodbine Mile stage
At 3h21, on September 17, 2022 • By WOODBINE
Trainer Mark Casse sent out back-to-back winners of the Ricoh Woodbine Mile when Tepin turned the trick in 2016 and World Approval followed suit in the next renewal.
This year, Casse looked to have a leading contender in Filo Di Arianna, who was coming off impressive victories over the E.P. Taylor Turf Course in the Grade 2 Connaught Cup and the Grade 2 King Edward.
“He came up with a minor injury,” said Casse, who is in the midst of a grueling run at the Keeneland September yearling sales. “The good news is we caught it very early. He’ll be just fine.”
And, with the Casse stable deep in quality, the trainer still has Get Smokin and March to the Arch for Saturday’s Grade 1, $1 million feature which is a “Win and You’re In” for the Breeders’ Cup Mile, a race which the trainer won with Tepin in 2015 and World Approval two years later.
Get Smokin is a relative newcomer to the Casse ranks and finished second to subsequent Grade 1 winner (and Woodbine Mile entrant) Shirl’s Speight in the Grade 3 Tampa Bay Derby in his first outing for his new interests on February 5.
A journey to Dubai was next and is best forgotten.
“That didn’t go well from the start,” said Casse. “He didn’t really ship over very well. He just was never happy over there. He ran a clunker, but he came back and he’s run very well ever since.”
Since returning to North America, Get Smokin has been prominent in three outings with the most recent a fourth-place finish in the Grade 1 Fourstardave over one mile of Saratoga turf.
And while Get Smokin has done much of his running on the front end, Casse believes the 5-year-old gelding is adaptable.
“I think the race will set up nice for him,” said the trainer. ‘He’s going to be pretty close to the lead, but doesn’t have to be on the lead, and he got a good post (No. 8).”
March to the Arch, a 7-year-old gelding who will be making his third Woodbine Mile appearance, ended fourth last year after running second in the 2020 edition while coming off a victory in the King Edward.
