Side Piece stars in Fraser opener

Side Piece (Shadow Play) won her eighth harness racing contest in 11 starts in the BC-Bred Stakes first leg on opening day at Fraser Downs on Thursday (Sep. 14).

The card featured the first legs of the Robert Murphy Memorial and Mary Murphy Memoral – the BC-Bred Stakes series for there-year-old pacing colts and fillies, respectively.

Side Piece, who was a BC-Bred Stakes champion last year, popped the pocket after Custard Or Nothing (Rod Therres) provided a :29.2 first quarter. Side Piece circled her quickly and moved to the half in :59.1 under orders from Brandon Campbell. She left her rivals no chance for a move as she flew to three-quarters in 1:26.4.

Custard Or Nothing was the only horse in range as they entered the stretch, and Side Piece finished strongly to keep the margin at two-lengths in 1:54.2. The former was 10 lengths clear of third-place finisher Heart Of A Dragon (Bradley Watt).

SIDE PIECE REPLAY

Side Piece is four-for-five this season, including a victory in the Penny Bath Memorial. The filly also won the Betty Milbank Memorial final at two. Jim Marino trains and co-owns her with breeder J J J Stables of Prince George.

Domi (Living It Up) gave Campbell and Marino a stakes double with a wire-to-wire performance in the first division of the Robert Murphy Memorial. The gelding maintained two lengths over pocket-sitter Mickie Mantle (Kelly Hoerdt) much of the way and came home in :27 to seal a two-and-a-quarter-length victory in 1:56. Billy Buxton (Dennis Johnston) finished well back in third.

DOMI REPLAY

Domi’s record is now seven victories in 18 attempts. He won four straight overnights earlier this year and took the Keith Linton Memorial in May. He has earned $73,405 and is six-for-11 this year. Mario co-owns the gelding with J J J Stables and Paul Sanders of Surrey.

In the second division, Dillon James (Mystician, Theres) took the lead approaching three-quarters and defended down the stretch to score in 1:55.4. Speakdollarsncents (Scott Knight) attempted to re-rally after letting him by earlier in the race but could get no closer than a length-and-a-half. T N Custard (Phil Giesbrecht) was best of the rest, a distant third.

DILLON JAMES REPLAY

The win was likely satisfying for Therres, as the horse he bred, owns, trains, and drives set a new lifetime mark. Dillon James has been a consistent performer with 15 top-three finishes in his 17 starts. The gelding hit the board in every leg of the Milbank Memorial last year and capped it off with a show finish in the final. He has now earned $52,675 and won three times in 17 outings.

Run N Raisins (Custard The Dragon) produced one of the night’s standout performances in the final split. The gelding sprinted out to a three-length lead at the quarter and held five lengths over the field through the middle splits. He then cruised home to cement his dominant effort with a 1:53.2 clocking and a five-and-a-quarter-length cushion. Usual Suspect (Campbell) was a clear second-best. Lukes Proclamation (Hoerdt) out-finished horses in the backfield for third.

RUM N RAISINS REPLAY

It was the third win lifetime for Rum N Raisins who did not see the winner’s circle as a rookie. He is three-for-19 this season and had not previously won a stakes event. Richard Lancaster trains the sophomore, whose bankroll now reads $29,898, for Wild Dunes Stables of Delta.

With their new season, Fraser Downs debuted a new high-definition livestream and graphical overhaul. The track will host racing on Thursdays and Fridays every week until closing day on Dec. 15.

Action continues Friday, Sep. 14 at 6:00 p.m. PDT with an 11-race slate featuring the first Preferred of the year.

For complete race results, click here.

by Nicholas Barnsdale, for Harnesslink