Impressive Dude (My Mvp) demolished his harness racing opponents by eight-and-a-half lengths and set the fastest time of all trotters in the Prospect Series Finals on Thursday (Sep. 27) at Grand River Raceway.
In the final for three-year-old trotting males, Impressive Dude strode to the front and commanded proceedings from there for Louis-Philippe Roy. The colt carried a three-length cushion through the final trip down the backstretch and sped away from the field, soaring home to a dominant victory in 1:58.3. Fox Valley Ontario (Garrett Rooney) circled all others after starting eighth to finish second. Acefortyfour Elvis (Tyler Borth) sat the pocket and held third in a photo over Leading Resolve (Bruce Richardson).
IMPRESSIVE DUDE REPLAY
Impressive Dude won one of his four starts in preliminary legs of the Prospect Series but hit the board in the other three. Roy co-owns him with Michel Letarte of Boucherville and Jean Allaire of Montreal. The colt, trained by Eric Nadeau, is nine-for-28 lifetime with earnings of $66,246.
Divinne Magic (Muscle Mass) captured the three-year-old trotting filly final in a 19-1 upset. The filly took the lead for Travis Cullen with a third-quarter brush and resisted favourite April Duford (Tyler Borth) down the lane to score in 2:01.3. Divinne Magic, trained by Keith Jones, has four wins in 27 career tries and a bankroll of $49,880. The Final win was her second tally of the year in 18 starts for owners Maggie Jones and Susan Heard of Barrie, Jody Simmons of London, and Philip Newfeld of Aurora.
April Duford was a length-and-a-half clear of Angelic Kt (Brett MacDonald) in second.
DIVINNE MAGIC REPLAY
Poof (Lookslikeachpndale, Thomas Smith) was gone by the eighth pole in the two-year-old colt and gelding trot Final. The freshman wired the field from post five and lengthened his margin of victory to five-and-three-quarter lengths in the last quarter to win in 1:59.3. Jayne Walker trains the colt who won the Balanced Image earlier this season and is now two-for-10. Walker co-owns him with Smith, and the colt has earned $30,634 for the pair.
Three Alarm Fire (Colin Kelly) held on for third over the closing Eiffel Power (Travis Henry).
POOF REPLAY
Radical Legacy (Muscle Mass) remained perfect the trot Final for rookie fillies, holding off Sandoon (Richardson) by three-quarter-of-a-length in 1:59.4. The winner is unbeaten in four lifetime starts, all in the Prospect Series. Her earnings now total $20,450 for trainer Gregg McNair and owners Ross and Brent Holmes of London.
Chaud Holliday (Ryan Holliday) was six lengths back in third.
RADICAL LEGACY REPLAY
Yoda Queen (All Bets Off, Andy Moore) was the standout of the pacing divisions, tying for the top time and dominating her three-year-old pacing filly rivals by six-and-three-quarter lengths. She stopped the clock in 1:55.4 for her fifth lifetime victory. The filly, owned and trained by Jamie Doig, has racked up $47,878 in 20 career appearances.
Oh Gouda (Michael Horner) held onto second over Handbagofcheezies (Nick Boyd).
YODA QUEEN REPLAY
Crazy World (Control The Moment, Rooney) captured the three-year-old pacing male Final for his fifth straight tally. He popped the pocked on the backstretch, pressed to the lead, and remained strong to the line to win in 1:55.4. The gelding, trained by Kathy Cecchin, debuted this year at three and is nine-for-19 with earnings for $60,115. Cecchin co-owns with John Cecchin.
Delightful Leader (Daryl Thiessen) passed pacesetter Cold Creek Guerero (J. Bradley Harris) in the stretch for the place spot.
CRAZY WORLD REPLAY
Bettin Again (Bettors Delight, Anthony Haughan) swept to the front on the far turn and took the two-year-old pacing male division in 1:57. It was the geldingās second victory in seven tries and his first start for new connections. Laverne Turnbull of Kitchener and trainer Meg Crone acquired the gelding from Determination and Luc Blais before the Final. Bettin Again has now earned $15,489.
He beat Meet Me In Mekonos (Borth) by a length-and-three-quarters. Letjimtakeover (Rooney) finished third.
BETTIN AGAIN REPLAY
Quiet Assurances (Control The Moment, Richardson) went coast-to-coast to become two-year-old pacing filly champion. The victory was her third in eight tries in her rookie season and her second in a row. She won two Prospect Series legs for trainer Susanne Kerwood. The fillyās coffers now hold $19,910 that she has earned in eight starts for owner/breeders Howard Taylor of Philadelphia and Falcon Racing of Jackson.
Wheres My Phone (MacDonald) pressured the winner late but was three-quarters-of-a-length in arrears. Distant Lover (Jason Ryan), the odds-on favourite, stalled off a first-over effort and finished third.
QUIET ASSURANCES REPLAY
The Finals concluded the Prospect Series, the third tier of the Ontario Sires Stakes program. The second-tier Grassroots will conclude on Sep. 30 at Woodbine Mohawk Park, followed by the elite-level Super Finals on Oct. 13 and Oct. 14.
The card was also the closing night of racing for Grand River Raceway. Kelly took the driving title with 42 wins in a tight race. Second-place finishers Henry and Harris tallied 39 each, followed by MacDonald and Haughan, who tied for fourth with 38. Brett Lester was the leading trainer with 18 victories. Lori Lepage won 16 races as runner-up.
Grand River Raceway will return next season with a larger oval. The track will be reconfigured to a five-eighths-mile surface in the offseason with a projected completion time of April 2024.
For complete race results, click here.
by Nicholas Barnsdale, for Harnesslink