Crazy Wow trotted home a winner in Saturday’s $185,000 Cleveland Trotting Classic at Northfield Park, dethroning last year’s champion Obrigado, and continues to march through the national free-for-all trotting ranks.

He entered the Classic off consecutive victories in the $150,000 Maxie Lee Invitational at Harrah’s Philadelphia and the $200,000 Charlie Hill Memorial Trot at Scioto Downs, scoring in both by leading his competition from gate-to-wire. Crazy Wow showed versatility by flying past his competition in a thrilling stretch drive to win by half a length in 1:52.3. The impressive clocking equalled the all-age trotting track record at Northfield Park.

Crazy Wow ($9.40) started from post two and sat second behind Obrigado (Mark MacDonald) through solid fractions of :26.4, :56 and 1:24.1. Race favourite Resolve (Ake Svanstedt) sustained a strong first-over bid and was slightly in front through the final turn, allowing Crazy Wow enough room to shift to the outside.

“The trip worked out perfect. I got to loom the danger the whole way,” said winning driver Chris Page. “When I got him out he showed he was a real horse and knew what to do.”

The race time replaces the 1:53.2 time of 2015 Cleveland Trotting Classic winner Daylon Magician (Jack Moiseyev) as the fastest mile ever on the Flying Turns for a five-year-old and up trotting horse, and equalled the all-age Northfield trotting record of Muscle Up The Goal (Aaron Merriman).

Saturday’s win is Crazy Wow’s third win this year and 18th lifetime score, increasing his bankroll to $1.9 million for owners Our Horse Cents Stables, Stable 45, J&T Silva Stables and Deo Volente Farms, and trainer Ron Burke.

Completing the $185,000 Cleveland Trotting Classic were Resolve, Obrigado, Maestro Blue Chip, Il Sogno Dream, Fly Jesse Fly and Will Take Charge. Homicide Hunter was scratched from the event due to sickness.

“He (Crazy Wow) is having a great 2017 campaign,” explained Page. “I look for a very, very big year from this horse.”

Drunk On Your Love Continues Ohio Sires Stakes Win Streak

Drunk On Your Love kept his winning streak alive as he captured his third leg Ohio Sires Stakes (OHSS) division on Saturday night's undercard at Northfield Park.

Four $40,000 divisions for Ohio-bred three-year-old pacing colts were contested on the clear, balmy summer evening at the Cleveland half-miler.

Owned by Mark Ford and Jason Settlemoir, Drunk On Your Love had won his first two OHSS legs — on May 1 at Miami Valley in 1:54 and on June 10 at Scioto Downs in 1:51.2. This latest victory had him pacing the winning mile in 1:52.3, besting rivals McRaven (Ronnie Wrenn Jr.) and McLucky (Kayne Kauffman) easily for trainer Jim Pollock Jr.

Drunk On Your Love, a son of Foreclosure N out of the Western Hanover mare Western Show who was bred by Harold Lee and Harold L. Bauder, pushed his career earnings to $143,500 with this latest victory.

Trainer Brian Brown harnessed McThriller to a wire-to-wire triumph in the second OHSS division. Chris Page steered the son of McArdle-You Thrill Me-Jate Lobell to a 1:52.1 clocking for owners NR Holdings, TLP Stable and Howard Taylor. McThriller had finished second in leg one of this series and won his second OHSS leg handily in 1:51.2 on June 10 at Scioto Downs.

Bred by GBW Breeding Farms, McThriller finished one and a hald lengths in front of Camwood (Kayne Kauffman), while Sunnys Bro (Greg Grismore) got up for third. McThriller now has $62,500 in seasonal earnings and $175,522 in career earnings.

David Wornstaff’s Big Bad Bruce rebounded from a fourth-place finish in his OHSS start on June 10 at Scioto Downs to capture this third leg event in a gate-to-wire career-best 1:51. The son of Big Bad John was steered by Chris Page to his eighth career victory for Wornstaff, who also trains and bred the bay colt.

Big Bad Bruce finished three-quarters of a length in front of the fast-closing Lifewithjohn (Aaron Merriman), while Lightning Onmyfeet (Ronnie Wrenn Jr.) notched third-place honours. Big Bad Bruce now has $85,460 in his career coffers.

Mr McDreamy (Aaron Merriman) spoiled Barnabas’ (Ronnie Wrenn Jr.) plans to win his second straight OSHS leg, by overtaking his rival in the stretch and drawing off by three and a quarter lengths to win the fourth division in 1:53.3. Mannys Too Special (Dan Noble) finished third.

Trained by Herman Wheeler for Casey Williams, Mr McDreamy picked up his third career victory in 12 starts and upped his earnings to $49,713. The son of McArdle-Mystical Dreamer-Western Hanover, who was bred by Country Club Acres and Hylight Stable, was third in each of his two previous OHSS starts.

(With files from Northfield Park and OSDF)