Canada's premier event for three-year-olds, the $1,000,000 Queen's Plate, restricted to Canadian-breds and run at Woodbine in Rexdale, a suburb of Toronto, is not the only big event in North America this weekend. The New York Racing Association has instituted the Stars & Stripes Festival, to be run at Belmont Park, which features the inaugural Belmont Derby Invitational and Belmont Oaks Invitational.

Thus there will be an unusual blend of what appear to be the youngest stakes races in North America (both at Belmont Park in Elmont, a suburb of New York, and set for Saturday, July 5^th) and the oldest continuously run stakes race on the continent (the Queen's Plate, being run for the 155^th time, the following afternoon).

Eleven have accepted for the first running of the Belmont Derby Invitational carded over 10 furlongs on turf. Closer scrutiny reveals that this race is actually old wine in a new bottle, in that it used to be known as the Jamaica Handicap. Two of its winners under that garb were imported to India by the Broadacres Stud, the 2011 hero, Western Aristocrat, and the 1994 victor, Pennine Ridge. One also recalls a son of Mr. Prospector finishing third back in 1992 – this was the future Manjri Stud stallion, Portroe.

Likewise the eleven that face off in the Belmont Oaks Invitational over the identical trip, also on turf, would have been lining up for the Garden City Stakes had this been last year, or even in an earlier avatar for the Rare Perfume Stakes. Still, it's a bold move to bring these races together, increase their prize money, add on the time-honoured Suburban Handicap and other supporting events, and thereby produce a heady cocktail, hopefully served up in fine summer weather, that should bring out the masses on the USA's Independence Day weekend.

Several invaders have crossed the pond for a tilt at the $1,250,000 prize of the Belmont Derby, chief amongst these being Toast Of New York (by Thewayyouare) who calls The Old Malthouse in Lambourn, Berkshire, home. At that establishment Jamie Osborne operates his training stables and it was there that he prepared the exciting three-year-old for his victorious foray to the desert which brought home the 1.2 million dollars prize for the UAE Derby. The colt has been prepared steadily for this target and Jamie Spencer will ride. After a leisurely spin on Thursday morning his trainer declared: "I think he looks great. He's eating and drinking well. He seems to have taken the whole thing pretty well. We're happy". 

Other visitors include the interesting Ballydoyle runner Adelaide (by Galileo), coming off a runner-up effort in the King Edward VII Stakes at Royal Ascot just a couple of weeks ago, who will have Colm O'Donoghue up, and the French Guineas third, Pornichet (by Vespone), now in the able hands of Australia's Gai Waterhouse, whose first starter in North America he will be. Gailo Chop (by Deportivo) may not be fashionably bred, but Julien Auge's mount is unbeaten this year, with his most recent score being in the Prix Noailles and he is to be feared.

Now with Patrick Gallagher, Flamboyant (by Peer Gynt) has tasted the wares of obscure French tracks such as Pornichet le Baule and Bordeaux le Bouscaut and ran a grand second on his American debut to Gala Award (by Bernardini) from the Todd Pletcher barn. The last-named re-opposes here with Johnny Velazquez donning silks and his compatriots include Bobby's Kitten (by Kitten's Joy). The last-named, a Ramsey home-bred, has proved to be a monster on turf for Chad Brown and Javier Castellano and is perhaps the best of the US-trained runners.

Other home-schooled runners include Peter Eurton's  Dance With Fate (by Two Step Salsa), "Shug" McGaughey's Mr. Speaker (by Pulpit) and Tom Proctor's Global View (by Galileo), none of which is without hope.

In the fillies equivalent, France is represented by Xcellence (by Champs Elysees), a fairly close third in the Prix de Diane-French Oaks, who has changed hands and will now sport the silks of Martin Schwartz. Francois Doumen will saddle her for the last time before she moves to the barn of Chad Brown. The globe-trotting Gerald Mosse has been booked for ride aboard the talented filly. Brown is likely to have mixed emotions if Xcellence wins as it would imply the defeat of the other Gallic representative, whom he sends out, namely Goldy Espone (by Vespone), the mount of Jose Lezcano.

It would also mean that Brown's remaining runner, Minorette (by Smart Strike), whom he inherited a few months ago from Aidan O'Brien, had failed to prevail under Joel Rosario. In exactly the same ownership, that of the Coolmore partners headed by Michael Tabor, is O'Brien's current delegate, Wonderfully (by Galileo), who seems woefully short of recent form. But then, she is hardly likely to have made the trip from Ireland if not in a condition to challenge for the honours…. Colm O'Donoghue will be at the controls.

The other Irish candidate for the prize has stronger claims – this is the Juddmonte-bred Flying Jib (by Oasis Dream) from the Dermot Weld stable. Keeping in mind Weld's tremendous successes with international runners, such as Go And Go (Belmont Stakes) and Vintage Crop and Media Puzzle, both triumphant in the Melbourne Cup, the Athasi Stakes victress has to be accorded respect and could well score in the Khalid Abdullah silks.

A few hundred kilometres away, the American-trained We Miss Artie (by Artie Schiller) is all the rage in Sunday's Queen's Plate, for which 15 Canadian-breds – all foaled in Ontario – have accepted. The downside of reserving such races for horses of a particular nationality is that it rewards mediocrity. No one can say, for example, that any of the last ten winners of the Queen's Plate has been anything other than inconsequential in the greater scheme of worldwide Thoroughbred breeding – and this from a country that has produced such influential performers as Dance Smartly, Fanfreluche, Nijinsky, Northern Dancer, Storm Bird and The Minstrel in the past. It's time to bite the bullet and open up the race to horses of all nationalities, with say a gross prize of $250,000, reserving the balance $750,000 as a bonus to Canadian-breds who placed. Better than throwing a million bucks at relative non-entities!  

After fulfilling his engagements in New York on Saturday, Javier Castellano will fly in to take the mount on the Ramsey-owned favourite, who hails from the barn of Todd Pletcher. We Miss Artie tried his hand in the Kentucky Derby but was found wanting, checking in 10^th (of 19) in the Louisville showpiece. Since then, he has had a taste of the Woodbine oval and came away with victory in the Plate Trial Stakes on June 15^th. As such, he is likely to start from gate # 6 at around evens.

Perennial leading trainer Mark Casse fields a trio headed by Woodbine Oaks heroine Lexie Lou (by Sligo Bay). The filly is expected to be the second choice, at 4 to 1, and while she ran very well last time, one can pick enough holes in her overall form to doubt her claims. What's more, she is drawn wide in gate # 14. Leading rider Patrick Husbands has the mount.

The only other runner felt likely to start at single digit odds is the Casse-trained Matador (by Malibu Moon), who was conceived in Kentucky and will be steered by expatriate Frenchman Julien Leparoux. The gulf between Matador and the top American-breds can be seen from the fact that he was unplaced in four consecutive Graded Stakes events in Florida and Kentucky earlier this year.

Similar has been the experience of Asserting Bear (by Bear's Kid), with lady rider Chantal Sutherland-Kruse doing duty for trainer Reade Baker. South of the border, he was unplaced in three Graded Stakes races. Around 15 to 1 is Ami's Holiday (by Harlan's Holiday) who, being relatively lightly-raced with only 6 starts under his belt, can surprise. His rider Luis Contreras and trainer Josie Cartoll teamed up three years ago to score in this race with Inglorious, so know how to execute plans for victory.

You might as well throw a dart at a chart of the remaining runners to pick a likely prospect. Fans of pedigree can look at Athenian Guard, a product of two Canadian champions in Leonnatus Anteas and Chopinina. He has never started in a stakes event and in his last prep race, he jinked to the left while shaping as the winner and lost his jockey. No wonder he is at 50 to 1!