A tripped-out Turbo Donato put the pedal to the metal in the late stages of Saturday’s $11,000 Preferred 2 for trotters at Georgian Downs, and he held on to win by three-quarters of a length for Team Baillargeon.
With Mario Baillargeon at the helm, Turbo Donato worked into the two-hole early and tracked Cimeronken through fractions of :27.3, :56.4 and 1:26.2 before going on the offensive. Baillargeon right lined the Ben Baillargeon trainee in the final quarter of the contest and the four-year-old son of Donato Hanover-Sun Sentinel fired home in :29.4 and posted the1:56.2 victory by three-quarters of a length over Cimeronken. Aisling was a lapped-on third.
Sent off as the 3-2 favourite, Turbo Donato prevailed for the partnership of Ben Baillargeon, Craig Turner, Santo Vena and Nunzio Vena. Together they watched the trotter improve this year’s record to 3-2-2 from 17 trips to the track with the win. The lion’s share of the purse bumped his earnings to $74,670.
Parlia Hanover was a wire-to-wire winner in the $7,000 Preferred 3 for trotters just two races earlier. The four-year-old daughter of Credit Winner-Phaeton chopped out fractions of :27.3, :57 and 1:26.2 for driver Paul MacKenzie before using a :30.2 closing panel to seal the deal in 1:56.4. Impressive and Just One Day finished just a half-length behind the winner.
Anthony Montini, who trains the mare for Holland Racing Stable of Niagara On The Lake, Ontario, watched her chalk up her eighth win of the year while lifting her lifetime earnings to $62,293.
To view results for Saturday's card of harness racing, click the following link: Saturday Results – Georgian Downs.