Mohawk Park has big weekend of Grand Circuit action

Harness Racing This Week: William Wellwood and Peaceful Way finals, Casual Breeze, Nassagaweya, Eternal Camnation, and Canadian Pacing Derby eliminations, Woodbine Mohawk Park, Milton, Ont.

Schedule of events: Grand Circuit racing will take place at Woodbine Mohawk Park on Friday (Aug. 25) and Saturday (Aug. 26).

The Friday program has a lone stake in two divisions, the C$142,100 Casual Breeze for 3-year-old filly trotters.

The lucrative Saturday card features the C$620,000 William Wellwood Memorial final for 2-year-old male trotters and the C$425,000 Peaceful Way final for 2-year-old filly trotters. Also on Saturday are three divisions in the C$280,100 Nassagaweya for 2-year-old male pacers, two divisions in the C$228,700 Eternal Camnation for 2-year-old filly pacers, and two C$50,000 eliminations in the Canadian Pacing Derby for older pacers.

Complete entries for the races are available at this link.

Last Time: After vaulting home with :25.4 closing quarters to win both the Meadowlands Pace and the Cane Pace, Confederate (Sweet Lou) obliterated yet another field of 3-year-old male pacers in Saturday’s (Aug. 19) $300,000 Max C. Hempt Memorial at Pocono Downs at Mohegan Pennsylvania, soaring off second-over cover to a 1:48.3 win — his sixth in seven tries this season.

The three innermost starters — Christchurch, Hungry Angel Boy and Stockade Seelster — threw down as the gates folded, and Christchurch (Yannick Gingras) threaded up the pegs to secure the top spot through a :26.1 quarter. Despite sustained pressure from the parked Stockade Seelster (David Miller), Christchurch maintained the lead to a :53.3 half, and Confederate, whom Tim Tetrick rated fourth off the early skirmish, moved into the prime second-over striking spot.

“I got away fourth and was happy to be there, and they were racing up front. I had to pull at the half to follow Dave’s parked horse — Dave’s horse raced great, kept fighting all the way. My horse did the rest from there; he’s pretty special.”

To say that the Sweet Lou-Geothermal colt did the rest from there was an understatement. After Christchurch hit three-quarters in 1:21, Confederate uncorked a three-wide rally turning for home, and he struck the front in the final sixteenth before widening his lead to three lengths at the winning post while in hand throughout. Stockade Seelster protected second after leveling off; Christchurch was a worn-down third.

“He just likes to win and he’s super-fast,” said Tetrick, who has driven the Brett Pelling trainee for Diamond Creek Racing in all of his sophomore starts. “It’s worked out that I’ve been able to race him off cover. He’s sharp, and he loves passing horses. As long as the trip allows me to do that, I think the horse will last a lot longer doing that. Usually, these colts are tired by now or getting tired, and I think he’s getting fresher and stronger. He loves his work.”

Confederate, who paid $2.10 to win, has won 11 of 14 races lifetime and has banked $1,281,629 in purses.

Complete recaps of all the races are available at the Grand Circuit website. For a list of 2023 race winners on the Grand Circuit, click here.

Grand Circuit Standings: In 2023, the Grand Circuit leaders in three categories (driver, trainer and owner) will once again be tracked on a points system (20-10-5 for the top three finishers in divisions/finals and 10-5-2 for the top three finishers in eliminations/legs). Winbak Farms is the sponsor for the 2023 Grand Circuit awards.

Here are the leaders (through the races on 8-19-23):

Drivers: 1. Dexter Dunn – 560; 2. Yannick Gingras – 537; 3. Tim Tetrick – 481; 4. Scott Zeron – 460; 5. David Miller – 389.

Trainers: 1. Ron Burke – 687; 2. Ake Svanstedt – 494; 3. Nancy Takter – 303; 4. Marcus Melander – 261; 5. Linda Toscano – 252.

Owners: 1. Diamond Creek Racing – 207.6; 2. Mark Ford – 148; 3. Burke Racing Stable – 129.2; 4. Hudson Standardbred Stable – 120; 5. Brad Grant – 93.

Looking ahead: Grand Circuit action will again be taking place next week at Woodbine Mohawk Park. The track will host the Maple Leaf Trot for older trotters, the Canadian Pacing Derby final for older pacers, and Simcoe Stakes for 3-year-old male and female trotters.

by Paul Ramlow, for The Grand Circuit