by Garnet Barnsdale

There’s a gelding racing Saturday night at Woodbine Racetrack that has been causing quite a buzz the past three weeks to the point where Isitfridayyet’s owners are probably asking mid-week: Is it Saturday yet?

This 5-year-old son of No Pan Intended out of the Artiscape mare Art Debut enters Saturday night’s “Non-winners of 7 races or $100,000 lifetime” coming off his third straight Saturday night Woodbine score.

Last Saturday (video here), Isitfridayyet set sail for the front just past a :27.2 opening quarter and once driver Louis-Philippe Roy made the lead with him, they sailed through a :55-flat opening half and a :55.2 back half on their way to a new life’s mark of 1:50.2.

The win was the sixth straight for the Richard Moreau trainee, the last four coming with Moreau training since he claimed Isitfridayyet for $20,000 on Feb. 19 on behalf of William Rosene of London, ON. It was also only two-fifths-of-a-second off the fastest mile in Canada this year, a 1:50 flat effort paced by Jins Shark on Jan. 20 at Woodbine.

Roy, who has driven Isitfridayyet in his last four wins says we may not have seen the best of this white-hot gelding, who has already visited the winner’s circle six times this year in only nine starts and earned more than $51,000. This follows a lackluster 2-for-29 campaign in 2017 which brought back only $14,615 in earnings.

“Actually, I think he is as good as any horse racing at Woodbine,” Roy said. “The only question is will he stay that good? We’ve seen a lot of horses being very good for a short period and then never come back as good. Only time would tell, but I think he is one of the best if not the best horse racing at Woodbine.”

Roy says that what makes this horse so good right now is that he can race him from anywhere and he requires little urging to make speed. “He is so quick, and he does what you want him to do, so you don’t have to get him over excited to make sure he’ll go,” he says. “It just takes a little ask and he will go. That’s what makes him able to adjust to any type of racing.”

Roy adds that an impending change in venue may also result in Isitfridayyet showing even more speed. “I think he might even be better at Mohawk with the big last turn,” he theorizes. “We’ll see soon.” Indeed, we will, and the way this gelding is rolling it will probably be in one of the top classes on a Saturday night where Isitfridayyet struts his stuff.