Five snag firsts at Mohawk

Five harness racing rookies visited the winner’s circle for the first time at Woodbine Mohawk Park on Wednesday (Sep. 20).

Heartbreak Beat (Tactical Landing) rolled from fourth to first in the stretch to start his career perfectly in 1:56.1. James MacDonald steered the colt, a $14,000 Lexington Select purchase, for trainer Gary Merner and owner Gino Toscani.

Talk Racy To Me (Bettors Delight, Louis-Philippe Roy) turned his form around in a 1:52.3 victory at 11-1. The colt had missed the board in six of seven prior career starts and dropped nearly two seconds from his most recent start. Jean Tourigny trains the homebred for Santo and Nunzio Vena.

Night Shadow (Shadow Play) soared by four rivals in the stretch to score his first in five tries in 1:53.2 for driver Scott Young and trainer Ben Wallace. Owners JMR Racing Inc. and Wallacestandardbreds Inc. co-bred the gelding, who debuted as a three-year-old earlier this year.

Ideal Star (American Ideal), shipping in from New York and entering the Richard Moreau barn, scored from the pocket in 1:54. W. J. Donovan owns the filly, which he won from the Lexington Select sale with a $210,000 bid. Ideal Star has started seven times – one in the Geers and five in the New York Sire Stakes.

Chris Christoforou guided Pretty Special (Resolve) to a late-closing victory from third-over in 1:57.2. The trotting filly has now raced five times. Camilla Christoforou trains her for Brad Grant, who spent $68,000 to bring home the filly from the London Selected sale.

Roy and MacDonald tied on the day with three wins each.

Action ramps up at Woodbine Mohawk Park on Thursday (Sep. 22) with six Grassroots semi-finals for two-year-olds. The three-year-olds will begin their postseason on Friday.

For complete race results, click here.

by Nicholas Barnsdale, for Harnesslink