Ten-length romp in $56,900 ABSS Diamond

The connections of Outlawguns N Roses (Captive Audience) must’ve thought they were in Paradise City as the filly crushed her harness racing rivals in the $56,900 Alberta Sires Stakes Diamond for three-year-old fillies on Saturday (May 25) at Century Downs.

Dave Kelly hustled her off the car to secure front-end control early. The filly paced :27.2 and :56.4 first-half fractions before the favoured Over Ice (Phil Giesbrecht) popped the pocket approaching three-quarters in 1:25.

Outlawguns N Roses quickly brushed her aside and exploded coming around the final turn and soared down the stretch to score by 10 lengths in 1:52.4.

Over Ice proved second-best with Byby Baby Byby (Mike Hennessy) three further lengths back in third.

OUTLAWGUNS N ROSES REPLAY

The winner is perfect through three starts this season and lowered her lifetime best with the latest victory. She was a star at two with wins in the ASHA Filly Pace, ABSS Starlet, Brad Gunn, and a place finish in the ABSS Super Final. Rodney Starkewski trains the sophomore and co-owns her with Clauzette Byckal of Onoway.

Also on the card was a make-up elimination for the ABSS Marksman for three-year-old males after the first split last week was a no contest. One Hot Minute (Westwardho Hanover, Brandon Campbell) stormed to a five-and-three-quarter-length win in 1:56. Rememberthecustard (Hennessy) was all alone in second, four-and-a-half lengths clear of show finisher One More Rocky (Logan Gillis). Yyc On The Horizon (Jamie Gray) was fourth.

ONE HOT MINUTE REPLAY

One Hot Minute broke his maiden with the victory. Campbell conditions the homebred for owners Jodi Loftus and Timothy Kane. The colt has earned $11,769 in seven tries.

Blue Star Mercury (Mystician, Hennessy) captured the card’s tightly-contested Preferred. Once on top, the gelding led without challenge to the half but soon came under fire from No Collusion (Campbell) and raced toe-to-toe with him into the far turn.

Blue Star Mercury edged away at the top of the lane but received new challenges from pocket-sitter Icy Blue Scooter (Nathan Sobey) and Mylittle Gingerman (Kelly Hoerdt) off cover. Icy Blue Scooter surged in deep-stretch, but Blue Star Mercury found the line in time to win by a nose in 1:53.2. Mylittle Gingerman was right there with them in third.

BLUE STAR MERCURY REPLAY

Blue Star Mercury, winner of last year’s Western Canada Pacing Derby, is now three-for-nine this season. Saturday’s win was his first at the Preferred level. Rodney Hennessy trains the four-year-old for Lorne Duffield and Jean Crochetiere. The gelding’s career record is now nine tallies and $149,362 in earnings in 34 appearances.

Century Downs is set to resume racing on Friday, May 31.

For complete race results, click here.

by Nicholas Barnsdale, for Harnesslink