Can 2019 champions repeat on Super Sunday

Trois-Rivieres, QC – This weekend is Super Sunday (Sept. 27) in Quebec with the Hippodrome 3R hosting eight championship harness racing finals of the Quebec-bred series and three return champions from 2019 will be defending their titles.

It is the richest day of racing in Quebec for 2020 with more than $500,000 in purse money on Super Sunday. The three-year-old’s compete for purses of $65,000 and the two-year-old’s go for $55,000.

The first return winner from 2019 is in the 6th race where Babidibou (post 6) defends this trotting title for trainer Maxime Velaye and owners Isidore Russo and Guy Corbeil.

The son of Royalty For Life will have his regular pilot Stephane Gendron in the sulky. This year he has won four of eight starts including a lifetime mark of 1:57 in the Breeders Trophy Series. He was a game second against older horses in the Preferred Trot last week and prior to that had won two straight legs of the series. He is listed as the 5/2 second in the race.

The race favorite is Kenogami Coco (post 1), who returns to H3R off two straight wins in the Grassroots at Mohawk Park, both in 1:56.2, his lifetime mark. The son of Wheeling N Dealin will be driven by Stephane Brosseau for trainer Dany Fountain and owner-breeder Gaetan Bono, Inc. of Laval.

The next return winner is Acaena De Chakrika (post 5) in the 10th race championship for three-year-old pacing fillies. This daughter of Sunshine Beach is seeking to sweep the series after winning all three of her preliminary legs for driver Stephane Brosseau, the fastest a lifetime mark of 1:56.4. She is trained by Dany Fontaine for owner-breeder Diane Lepine of Quebec City.

The race favorite and rightly so is Steakazana from post six. This daughter of Western Paradise has exploded on the scene at H3R with three straight wins. She has a record of 1:55.3 and last week at H3R defeated a field of older pacing mares in 1:58.4. She is trained by Francis Richard for the MCR Streakazana Group of Charlottetown, PE and will be driven by Louis-Philippe Roy, who has come back home from Ontario to compete on Super Sunday.

Perhaps the toughest of all eight championship finals is the 11th race for the three-year-old pacing colts. Here is the entry from trainer Maxime Velaye and owner-breeder Guy Corbeil of Mirabel of Eclat De Rire (post 2) and Retour Au Jeu (post 4).

Eclat De Rire is the defending champion. The son of Leader Bayama sports three wins this year, but none of them came in the series. He barely made the final because he had two seconds and one third place finish in the preliminary rounds.

Stephane Gendron will drive Eclat De Rire, who has a mark this season of 1:56.1. His stablemate, Retour Au Jeu, has five wins in ten starts already in 2020 and sizzled in the series two starts back with a lifetime mark of 1:54.2. He has won two rounds and will be driven by Jonathan Lachance.

Mickymaksomespeed (post 6) has had a superb season for owner, breeder and trainer Michel Allard of Saint-Esprit. This son of Mickey Hanover sports eight wins in just ten starts. Last week he defeated a strong field of older horses, winning with ease in 1:54.3. He has a lifetime mark of 1:53.3 taken at Rideau Carleton Raceway.

The field also features Whitecookie (post 5), who won a leg of the series for trainer-driver and co-owner Marie Claude Auger; return winner CL Big Beach (post 7) and HP I Got To Play (post 1).

There is no return winner in the 2nd race trot final for the fillies which is headlined by Kinnder High Class (post 3), who has won two straight at H3R.

The fourth race Preferred Trot at H3R Sunday nearly saw a triple dead heat finish for win in the fourth race.

Keepall and driver Pascal Berube left from post five to take command with Precieuse CC (Claude Beausoleil) sitting the two-hole trip and Bucketlist Hanover (Samuel Fillion) to the opening quarter mile in :28.

Stuck first-over, Bucketlist Hanover kept the pressure on as Capteur De Rive (Stephane Gendron) took advantage of the second-over cover past the half mile marker in :56.3.

By the three-quarters in 1:26.3, Keepall was still strong on the lead but as Bucketlist Hanover was not gaining ground, Gendron went three-wide with Capteur De Reve and they raced three-wide around the final turn into the top of the stretch.

Precieuse CC found room to come after Keepall as did Capteur De Reve and those three finished in a photo finish.

Keepall ended up winning by a nose in 1:58 over Precieuse CC with Capteur De Reve third by a head.

It was a lifetime mark for Keepall, a six-year-old gelded son of Angus Hall, trained by Sylvain Tremblay for the Alpha Stable of Metabetchouan and Gino Curadeau of Fermont. The winner paid $10.40.

Both Precieuse CC and Capteur De Reve are former Quebec-bred Series Champions. Holiday Party ($15.80), also a former champion, won the 7th race trot in 1:59.4 for driver Pascal Berube.

Track Notes: H3R’s leading driver, Pascal Berube, had another big day with a driving triple. Live racing resumes Sunday at H3R at 1:00 pm with the $500,000 Quebec Series Championships. For a free race program, visit www.hippodrome3r.ca.

From the Quebec Jockey Club