Argos converts ideal trip into Grade 1 Summer Stakes triumph
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TORONTO, September 13, 2025 – Argos kicked off Saturday’s stakes action at Woodbine with a thrilling score in the $500,000 bet365 Summer Stakes (G1T), for 2-year-olds, over one mile of turf.
Ridden by Flavien Prat, Argos became a stakes winner in the Summer and earned a fees-paid berth in the $1 million Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf, a one-mile race which will be run this year at Del Mar on October 31.
“It got a little rough going into the first turn,” said Prat. “Luckily, I was a bit behind that, so it didn't affect me as much as others.
"I honestly, really loved the way he ran last time. I thought, you know, the last quarter was quite fast, and I don't think it was the right setup for him. And obviously today, we went on the inner [turf] and we had a better draw and a bit more experience and seasoning. And it was a good run.”
Marcus J set fractions of :23.26, :48.14 and 1:12.38, but was confronted by a host of runners coming out of the turn for home. It was stablemate Two Out Hero who seized command with less than 200 yards to the wire, but the late-charging duo of Argos, who had raced mid-pack for most of the Summer, and 8-5 mutuel choice Wild Desert (IRE), who had come from well back, arrived on the scene soon after, with Argos digging down deep to eke out a head win. Two Out Hero finished third, a length behind Wild Desert (IRE). Teddy’s Rocket was fourth.
The final time was 1:35.70 over a firm inner turf. Jupiter and Military Time were scratched.
Argos, trained by Riley Mott, was making his third career start in the Summer after winning his debut over 5 ½ furlongs on the Ellis Park turf in July, and then finishing third in the Soaring Free Stakes, at 6 ½ furlongs over the E.P. Taylor turf at Woodbine, on August 16.
Owned by David S. Romanik, the bay, a son of Nyquist out of the Acclamation (GB) mare Athenian (IRE), was a $165,000 purchase at this year’s OBS March Sale of Two-Year-Olds in Training.
“My second horse (Caltech) raced in the Breeders Cup in 1989 – it's been a long time since then, and now, my second one,” said Romanik. “This horse breezed at OBS in :30.4 and the only other horse I've ever owned who did that ran in the Breeders’ Cup in 1989, so thought I had something special. We ended up buying him back at the sale because he didn't reach the price we wanted. But we thought he was this caliber.”
Bred in Kentucky by Green Lantern Stables, LLC, Argos, fifth choice in the betting, paid $15.70 for the victory.
Chris Lomon, Woodbine
