Fraser Downs hosts $400,000 in series finals

Some serious purses will be given out at Fraser Downs on Sunday afternoon (Nov. 6) as two and three-year-olds will go to post in four major signature harness racing event finals. Each of the four finals races will go for $100,000 in purse money. Harnesslink’s Trey Colbeck reviews the fields for the four finals.

Race 3 Betty Millbank Memorial 

Two-year-old pacing fillies will be the first to compete for their crown. The Jim Marino trained Side Piece (Shadow Play) is the slight morning line favourite at morning line odds of 8-5. She’s won her last two races and has won three of her first five starts. Her lifetime mark of 1:58.1 was achieved last week in the fourth leg of the event. Brandon Campbell will team up once again with the young filly and they will look to make it three straight wins.

Custard Or Nothing (Custard The Dragon) comes in with morning line odds at 9-5. The Rod Therres’ trained filly has won three of her first five starts. She achieved her lifetime mark of 1:57.2 back a couple of weeks ago in the third leg of the stakes event. The other Jim Marino entry in the final is Snowpeak (Artspeak) comes into the race at 3-1 morning line odds. She’s finished in the top three five times during her six lifetime starts.

Race 5 Robert Millbank Memorial

Mickie Mantle (Custard The Dragon) will look to make it five straight wins and a complete sweep of all the legs of the Robert Millbank Memorial Pace for two-year-old colts. He has the current lifetime mark of 1:55.3 and over $38,000 in earnings to date. Mickie Mantle and Kelly Hoerdt received the inside post position and will look to take advantage of it.

Jim Marino will look to potentially sweep the two-year-old divisions with his entrant, Shots Fired (Custard The Dragon). Shots Fired has won two straight races coming into the final. Another horse to keep an eye on heading into this final is Dillion James (Mystician) The Rod Therres, bred, owned and trained gelding has had three straight second place finishes. Although he has only one lifetime win, he has never finished outside the top three and could be a gambler’s friend if they are looking for some winning tickets.

Race 7 Robert Murphy Memorial

Lets Tie One On (Vertical Horizon) is the clear favourite heading into the three-year-old colt and gelding pace final. In his last four starts, he has gotten his picture taken in the winner’s circle three of those starts and the other was a second-place finish. He finished just behind, Itll Be Fine (Hes Watching) who comes into the final with 7-2 odds. In Itll Be Fine’s last five starts he has two wins and three second place finishes.

The odds maker gave Joe Dimagio (Custard The Dragon) 3-1 odds even though it’s the Kelly Hoerdt trained gelding that has not won since this past June. However in the eleven starts since then he has been able to finish in the top three eight times.

Race 8 Mary Murphy Final

The last final up is for the three-year-old filly pace division. Shoot The Whiskey (Custard The Dragon) is given 9-5 morning line odds and will be the one to beat. Shoot The Whiskey is another Jim Marino trained pacer looking to get a cheque on the Sunday afternoon card. Her lifetime mark of 1:54.0 might be hard to beat on Sunday, but she does have the fastest personal best out of the entire field.

Outlaw What If CC (Mystery Chase) draws the inside and will look to spoil the fun for the favourite. Not only did she win her last race, but she also set a new lifetime mark of 1:54.1. Only one-fifth of a second difference between her and the favourite’s personal best. Out Law What If CC gets some post position relief could make things difficult for Shoot The Whiskey.

For Sunday’s race entries, click here.

by Trey Colbeck, for Harnesslink