Splash of Bourbon achieves first stakes win in Thunder Bay
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TORONTO, July 26, 2026 — Splash of Bourbon continued her outstanding run of form with an off the pace score, her third straight victory and first career stakes win, in Sunday's $150,000 Thunder Bay Stakes.
Ridden for the fourth straight race by Fraser Aebly, the Sid Attard trainee broke sharply from post position 7 and settled in 4th through an opening quarter-mile in :22.25.
Souper Sporty, a recent 18-1 upset winner of the Georgian Bay Stakes (with Aebly aboard), was ridden today by Sahin Civaci. They broke on top and led the field of 9 comfortably through the opening half-mile in :45.39.
Splash of Bourbon made a steady advance around the far turn and began to pick off runners including favourite Souper Diva. Inside the 3/16th pole, the 3-year-old chestnut daughter of Old Forester hit her best stride, closing outside of a tiring Souper Sporty, and gamely outkicked a rail skimming Arianna's Tour to win by 1 1/2 lengths in a final time of 1:11.29.
After adding blinkers for her second start as a sophomore, Splash of Bourbon reeled off back to back main train sprint wins, both with Aebly aboard. Today’s win in the added money six-furlong sprint for Ontario-sired fillies made it three triumphs on the hop.
"She can kind of do anything,” said Aebly. “She's a really smart filly. I wanted to let her break, let her find her feet, let her get comfortable. She did that. And when I started to move her, she fired for me, she really fired today."
Owned and bred by Tucci Holdings, Splash of Bourbon won at first asking last September, winning a five-furlong main track dash by a length with Ryan Munger up. She stepped up to face stakes company in her next two starts, finishing a distanced a fifth and seventh respectively and was subsequently sent to the farm for a freshening.
"They're two-year-olds. You give them the winter off," said Attard, a 2013 Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame inductee. "That's why I like to give horses a rest. Let them run in the snow, and then they heal themselves. Time heals everything."
On July 11th, Splash of Bourbon won her second in a row prevailing by a head in a hard-fought win, for which she earned a career high 75 Beyer Speed Figure. Wheeling her back on short rest, off a top effort, did concern Attard.
"The only thing I'm worried about with this filly is coming back in two weeks, because she always give a hundred per cent."
With the Thunder Bay added to her resume, Splash of Bourbon improved to 4-1-0 from seven lifetime starts, all on the local synthetic.
Splash of Bourbon was listed at 3-1 on the morning line, went off at 2.60-1 and returned $7.20 for the win.
Arianna's Tour was second, Souper Sporty held for third and stretch running Pageant Queen was up for fourth. Race favourite Souper Diva was seventh.
Phil McSween, Woodbine
