The team of trainer Charlie Appleby and jockey William Buick with Godolphin runners has been potent in North America in recent years, and a significant chunk of that success (five Grade 1 wins) has come at Woodbine. The trio won the Rogers Woodbine Mile Stakes Sept. 13 with Notable Speech, giving the trio its third win in four years in the race and the previous two winners — Modern Games in 2022 and Master of The Seas in 2023 — went on to post victories in the FanDuel Breeders' Cup Mile presented by PDJF.

Notable Speech finished third in last year’s Breeders’ Cup Mile and returned to North America for the first time since that race to win Saturday’s Woodbine Mile by 1 ¾ lengths as the 2-5 favorite. A “Win and You’re In” Challenge Series race, the Woodbine Mile gave winner Notable Speech an expenses-paid berth in the 2025 Breeders’ Cup Mile.

Accomplishments: Notable Speech entered the Woodbine Mile winless in his previous four races this season, but the level of competition in those starts was elite. He was beaten by 2 ½ lengths or less when unplaced in Group 1 races at Newbury, Royal Ascot and Newmarket in May, June, and July. Notable Speech entered the Woodbine Mile off a runner-up finish by a head in the Group 1 Aga Khan Studs Prix Jacques le Marois in France Aug. 17, an indication that he was rounding into his best form. That positive result, a classic win in the 2024 QIPCO Two Thousand Guineas among two Group 1 wins last year, and his third-place finish in the Breeders’ Cup Mile led to Notable Speech being a heavy favorite in the Woodbine Mile.

Not much went right early in the Woodbine for the 4-year-old by Dubawi. He broke slowly from the starting gate and was hustled up to stay within striking range while in tight quarters. His winning rally came from five wide but an explosive turn of foot carried Notable Speech to a comfortable win by 1 ¾ lengths over My Boy Prince.

“He had to be brave for a little bit there, but he was, and once he got into that position, he relaxed beautifully, and he got into nice rhythm,” Buick said. “And he was, for me, he was winning from a long way out.”

Notable Speech winning Woodbine Mile. (Eclipse Sportswire)

Speed Figures: Notable Speech earned a 110 Equibase Speed Figure and a 101 Beyer Speed Figure for the Woodbine Mile Stakes win. He earned a 122 Equibase figure for his third-place finish in last year’s Breeders’ Cup Mile and a 103 Beyer Speed Figure, so he capable of running faster and seems to be trending in the right direction to be at his best at Del Mar on Nov. 1.

“Look, he ran a solid race last year [in the Mile],” said Alex Merriam, an assistant trainer for Appleby. “I think the experience from going there and coming here again, hopefully sharpening up on the two turns, and he shouldn't be too far away.”

Looking Ahead: Since the start of 2021, Appleby runners have been dominant on North American soil with 41 winners from 129 starters, good for 32%, with 24 Grade 1 wins. Appleby and Buick, who rides first call for the stable, have been even better with 20 wins from 56 starters for 36% with 17 Grade 1 wins.

At the Breeders’ Cup World Championships, Appleby’s runners have 11 wins in 27 starts for a remarkable 40.7% winning percentage with a 63% rate of top-three finishes. That is a long way of saying it would be foolish to discount Notable Speech’s chances in the Breeders’ Cup Mile.

He has a terrific chance to follow Modern Games and Master of The Seas and the third horse in four years to complete the Woodbine Mile-Breeders’ Cup Mile double for Godolphin, Appleby, and Buick.