Power of Destiny (GB) takes on six in Grade 2 Dance Smartly
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TORONTO, October 1, 2026 – Seven fillies and mares, 3-year-olds and up, including Power of Destiny (GB), will vie for top prize in the $200,000 bet365 Dance Smartly Stakes (G2T), a 1 1/16-mile test over the E.P. Taylor turf, Saturday at Woodbine. The winner of the race will earn automatic entry into the 2027 Pegasus World Cup Filly & Mare Turf Invitational Stakes (G2T), slated for January at Gulfstream Park.
Since the North American chapter of her career began this May, Power of Destiny (GB), trained by Jamie Begg, has posted a win, a second and a third from five starts, including a second in her Canadian debut, a 1 1/16-mile main track race, on May 3 at Woodbine.
Following an off-the-board finish in the Belle Mahone Stakes (G3) on May 30, the 5-year-old daughter of Sea The Stars (IRE) out of the unraced Kingman (GB) mare Rux Power (GB) was victorious in her North American turf debut, winning a 1 1/16-mile inner turf allowance optional claimer by a neck.
Power of Destiny (GB) then traveled to the Empire State where she was third in a 1 1/8-mile inner turf race at Saratoga on Aug. 5. Ten days later, she stepped up to the Grade 2 ranks and finished fourth 1 1/16-mile Canadian Stakes, run over the Woodbine inner turf.
“We had to wheel her back pretty quickly and when Johnny [Velazquez] got off after the Canadian, he said that having more time between the races would have been preferable, but she was still competitive and game,” said Begg. “I think if she would have run her race, she could have been third, so that is why we have given her some extra time between that race and this one.
“We have also had her on Lasix since coming over here and she has run more consistently. When she ran in Europe, she was somewhat inconsistent, so we believe that has led her to being a more consistent horse over here.”
Now, the bay will have her first chance to run on the sweeping E.P. Taylor turf.
“We’re looking forward to it,” said Begg, who is on course to have his best season to date. “It seems like she has run better when she has been able to run behind some speed and covered up, which is the case for a lot of the European fillies. Her first start here was on the synthetic and she went to the lead, where it seems she was a little lost up there.
“In all her races here, she has shown that fight she has in her. In her first race at Woodbine, it looked like she would end up third – another filly was coming on – but she battled on and kept her head in front for second. She is quite a gamer. I really like this horse and hopefully, she can show up, having had some extra time in between her races.”
Power of Destiny (GB) was purchased for 40,000 guineas at the 2025 Tattersalls December Mares Sale by Begg and Joe Miller, for the ownership group of Rancho Temescal Thoroughbred Partners, Upland Flats Racing, Jonathan Wilmot and Nick Bauer.
“Joe Miller is the representative at Tattersalls, and he is also the manager for the partners in this mare,” said Begg in an earlier interview. “He had very much highlighted her as a horse we could really look at. She was very highly rated in Europe, which caused her to carry a lot of weight when she was running. Two races before we brought her over here, she was carrying 140 pounds. The idea was that when she ran in the ‘one other than’ races here, she could carry around 121 pounds, which is far more reasonable than 140.
“It was funny because at that sale, the guys in the group were pretty gung-ho about taking a swing at buying her. There were a couple of horses that were going for quite a bit of money but weren’t on our radar. Joe had earmarked this mare, and we were willing to go up to £100,000 on her. And when we bought her for only 40, each one of the partners figured they had bought her themselves. But they are all great with having her in partnership. We got a pretty good bargain and are playing with house money at this point.”
Power of Destiny (GB) is 3-3-4 from 21 starts, along with $134,119 in purse earnings.
Alfredo Ramos is the groom.
Recent works: Power of Destiny (GB) covered three panels in :35.20 on the turf training track on Sept. 27, one week after a four-furlong work in :49.80 over the same surface.
“We worked her on the turf, giving her an easy three-eighths,” said Begg, of the most recent move. “She went a little quick, but if you saw the work, you would never have realized it was that fast. She came out of it happy and we’re happy with how she is coming into this spot.”
Fast facts: The race is named after the Sam-Son Farm superstar who went undefeated in 1991 while taking the Canadian Triple Crown and becoming the first horse bred in Canada to win a Breeders' Cup race (G1 Distaff, 1991). She is a member of both the Canadian and American Racing Halls of Fame. Bessarabian won the first edition in 1986.
Wagering menu for the Dance Smartly: Includes Rolling Double / Exacta / 0.20 Trifecta / 0.20 Superfecta / 0.20 Pick 3 (Races 6-7-8) / 0.20 Pick 5 (Races 7-8-9-10-11) / $1 Swinger / $5 All Stakes Pick 3 (Races 6-8-9) ***15 % Takeout***
Field for the Grade 2 Dance Smartly
Post – Horse – Jockey - Trainer
1 – Proctor Street – Pietro Moran – Brendan Walsh
2 – Power of Destiny (GB) – Ryan Munger – James Begg
3 – Pin Up Betty – Rajiv Maragh – Michael Maker
4 – Warming – Fraser Aebly – Graham Motion
5 – Eponine (IRE) – Rafael Hernandez – Kevin Attard
6 – Elysian Field – Romero Ramsay Maragh – Mark Casse
7 – Ozara (IRE) (S) – Sahin Civaci – Miguel Clement
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Chris Lomon, Woodbine
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