Fire and Wine turned the Ontario Derby into another controlled front-end performance Saturday at Woodbine, defeating favored Military Time by 2 1/2 lengths in the $175,000 Grade 3. The victory gave the Ontario-bred colt his first graded-stakes win and elevated him into the Canadian 3-year-old championship conversation.
Jalon Samuel put Fire and Wine into the race immediately from post 3, allowing him to establish command through an opening quarter-mile in 23.81 seconds. He was still comfortable after a half-mile in 47.83, with Teleport tracking about a length behind, and extended his advantage to two lengths after six furlongs in 1:11.67. Military Time made the first serious move turning for home, but Fire and Wine changed gears when asked and finished in 1:50.80. Woodbine's official result lists Brachetto third and Trevally fourth.
The betting story was nearly as notable as the trip. Fire and Wine was listed at 15-1 on the morning line, attracted enough support to leave the gate at 4-1, and returned $10.30 to win. That late confidence was rewarded by a horse whose recent form already suggested more than his morning-line price: he had won the 12-furlong Breeders' Stakes three weeks earlier, completing the Canadian Triple Crown series with a four-length score on turf.
Saturday's result also added another layer to the rivalry among Canada's leading 3-year-olds. Military Time arrived as the Prince of Wales Stakes winner, while Brachetto had already captured the Grade 3 Marine Stakes. Fire and Wine had finished third in the King's Plate and fifth in the Prince of Wales before Samuel guided him to the Breeders' Stakes victory, giving the colt a résumé built across Woodbine's all-weather surface, Fort Erie and turf. His record now stands at four wins from 14 starts, with four seconds and four thirds.
The running style remains the key handicapper's question. Fire and Wine has repeatedly shown that he is most effective when allowed to find his rhythm early, but the Ontario Derby was not simply a soft-speed theft: he kept the pace honest, absorbed pressure from the favorite and still drew clear. Samuel told Woodbine that giving the colt a longer rein helped him relax, adding that Fire and Wine “answered well” when asked for his run. The rider also noted that the colt covers considerable ground and can make pace judgment deceptively difficult. Woodbine's race report detailed the trip and post-race comments.
Trainer Zeljko Krcmar was even more bullish after the performance, saying Fire and Wine “doesn't know how good he is” and that the colt had effectively played with the field. Krcmar pointed to the Grade 3 Valedictory Stakes at Woodbine on December 5 as a possible next start, a logical target given Fire and Wine's proven stamina and the 1 1/2-mile distance. A successful return there would give him another opportunity to settle the season-long championship argument against the best older and 3-year-old stayers on the Woodbine circuit.