Charlie Appleby says it's not easy to come over to North America and win major stakes, even though he makes it look that way. On Saturday at Woodbine, Appleby will send out three horses, all of them in Grade I competition, and each one looks to have an excellent chance. He usually does well when he ships to anywhere in North America, but has been particularly tough at Woodbine, where he is 9-for-17 (53%). All nine of his Canadian winners have come in Grade I stakes.“We have sent the right horses to Woodbine to be competitive and we have had a lot of luck there,” Appleby said. “They have to ship there first and foremost and you hope they get there in good condition and that they adapt to the surroundings. Because of all the traveling we do, we feel like we've been choosing the right horses because we've seen it so much of late.”And is it easy? Are European turf horses simply better than North American turf horses?“It's far from easy,” he said. “I can assure you of that. We have had a lot of success, but I think that's because we've brought some good horses to the U.S., first and foremost. The experience we have gained over the years has helped us do the right things when we get there. You want to get there in the best shape and get a performance that you hope will put you in a competitive position. I feel that the turf horses in North America are improving year after year, so it's becoming harder. There are more turf races in the U.S. now than there have been historically. People are buying and training more with turf horses in mind than they were 20 years ago. It becomes more competitive every year. That just means we have to up our game and bring a better horse.”Appleby will start three horses at Woodbine Saturday. All three are morning line favorites.A look at Appleby's trio of starters:Wild Desert (Ire) (Too Darn Hot [GB}) will go in the Grade I Summer S. for 2-year-old colts. He is 1-for-3 in his career but was at his best last out when finishing a troubled third in the Group 2 Superlative Stakes at Newmarket.“He hasn't run since July,” Appleby said. “But after he ran so well in his last start it was our target to come to Canada. That's the only reason why he hasn't run lately. He's doing well. He drew stall 10, which might make things tricky. They'll be running on the inner turf course so it will be tight out there for an inexperienced horse who has been running in straight seven-furlong races. He encountered a turn in his first start at Haydock, but it is nowhere near as sharp as what he'll be facing at Woodbine. He's doing well physically, he's in a good level of form and he had spin around the grass there (Thursday) morning and seemed to handle it fine. Everyone was pleased with that. He should be live player. He had some trouble in his last race, but I don't mind. There should be some hustle and bustle in this race. He's been through that and I hope that experience will benefit him Saturday. Dance ToThe Music (GB) (Dubawi {Ire}) will run in the Grade I Natalma Stakes. She's 2-for-2 and is coming off a win in the Aug. 9 G3 Sweet Solera S. at Newmarket.“She's a full sister to Space Blues (the winner of the 2021 GI Breeders' Cup Mile) so she has the pedigree to, hopefully, be a Breeders' Cup contender,” Appleby said. “She's 2 from 2. She had a nice break after breaking her maiden in the spring. In her last performance, she showed some grit to get the job done and I have to say she's probably improved physically since. She got a nice draw. When you get those nice draws you have to use them to your advantage and hopefully she can break well enough to get a good position. I feel stepping up to the mile should suit her on that style of track.” Notable Speech (GB) (Dubawi {Ire}) is a class horse with two wins in Group 1 company, in the 2024 Sussex S. and the English 2000 Guineas. He was also third as the favorite in the last year's GI Breeders' Cup Mile. He has not won since the Sussex 16 months ago, but looked like his old self when second last time out in the G1 Prix Jacques Le Marois in France (see below). He is the 8-5 morning line favorite in the Group I Woodbine Mile.“Notable Speech is a Guineas winner and a Sussex winner and you can't get much better than that,” Appleby said. “He's been such a good horse for us. In the Lockinge he needed the run off a big layoff. The Queen Anne was one of those races that if William (Buick) could do it over again he would have sat where he was and waited for the gap to come at the end. The jocks have to make split-second decisions and sometimes in doing so you might lose that momentum. In the July Cup, we thought we would take a crack at six furlongs. The thing we did in the Jacques Le Marois was to drop him in and ride him like he's a good horse and ride him so that he could show that good turn of foot that he has. We just came up short. The most important part of that is that we saw the real Notable Speech that day. He's got a nice draw and he will probably be ridden more forwardly than he has because I expect coming off that straight could be a problem. He's got an electric turn of foot but you still need to be in a position where you can use it.“It's a competitive race, as one would expect. But he's been there and done it at the top level. He's got the experience of running at Del Mar under his belt. I think he ticks all the boxes going into the Woodbine Mile. As for the juveniles, they are unexposed types. We feel confident we're coming over there with the right kind of horses to be competitive.“Of our three, Notable Speech has done it at a top level. Until you actually run the juveniles you don't know. They shipped in fine and they went around the turf track (Thursday) morning and the lads were pleased with what they saw. You may think you're bringing over the right kind of horses for these races but until they actually run you just don't know. We'll be showing up Saturday with the right horses that we think will be competitive.”All three Grade I features are Breeders' Cup 'Win and You're In' Challenge races for their respective divisions. The post Charlie Appleby Poised For Huge Saturday at Woodbine appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.