$120 million for Hall of Famer

Hall of Fame harness racing driver Chris Christoforou picked up more than enough in earnings to reach the $120 million milestone at Woodbine Mohawk Park on Thursday (May 2).

The reinsman got it done in his first of two drives on the night. In his 46,060th start, he pulled Finite (Resolve) from the pocket on the final turn, and the colt battled off pacesetter Devils Kiss (Louis-Philippe Roy) and Stormont Happy Day (Sylvain Filion) to win in 1:54.4.

FINITE REPLAY

The victory was Christoforou’s 6,795th in a career that began in 1990. He was an elite driver on the Woodbine Entertainment Group circuit from the late 90s to the mid-2000s, winning the O’Brien Award for Driver of the Year four times. He has gradually scaled down since 2019, the last time he raced more than 1,000 times in a season. Christoforou was inducted into the Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame in 2023. His earnings total after Thursday’s card is $120,007,358.

It was a maiden-breaking win for Finite, who competed at the stakes level last season at two. He earned cheques in every start, including a show finish in the Millard Farms Final, but broke in two of his final three outings. Clark Beelby trains the colt for Coyote Wynd Farms of Oakville.

Also on the card, Winning Alliance (Chapter Seven) stayed perfect in 2024 with a fifth straight win. The filly took the lead coming off the final turn for Todd Ratchford and resisted a pair of challengers to score in 1:54.1, a new life’s mark. She made just three starts as a two-year-old and was shut down in August, returning in March this year. Matt Bax trains the three-year-old for Bax Stable of Campbellville and Glengate Farms of Erin.

WINNING ALLIANCE REPLAY

Racing resumes at Woodbine Mohawk Park on Friday, May 3 with a 12-race offering, including the eliminations for the SBOA Stakes filly divisions. First post is set for 7:10 p.m. EDT.

For complete race results, click here.

by Nicholas Barnsdale, for Harnesslink