For the first time, the Quebec Jockey Club will play host to the Quebec Regional Fair Circuit Finals this Sunday (Sept. 23) at Hippodrome 3R.

It was in 1983 that the beginnings of what would later become the "Regional Circuit of Quebec Horse Racing" was first formed. At that time, a dozen amateur race tracks were operating in Quebec, but independently.

The goal of grouping these tracks and having an organized Fair Circuit race season came from Paul-André Lavigne, François Parr and Wilfrid Flora, who founded the Provincial Association of Amateur Racing Clubs Inc.

The finals of the Regional Circuit, a culmination of a successful season in 2018 that saw fifteen events this summer, will feature categories of racing not familiar at Hippodrome 3R, but exciting none-the-less.

Many of the races on the Regional Circuit feature amateur and young drivers of all-ages, where they get their schooling and apprentice work towards their professional licenses.

Thus, it will be a different show on Sunday as these provisional drivers get to compete on a professional level, many for the first time. Also, horses in the finals do not necessarily need to meet the normal qualifying standards at 3R.

It was on the Quebec Regional Fair Racing Circuit that many young Quebec residents learned to become top drivers including Sylvain Filion and Louis-Philippe Roy.

Some of the finals and challenges on Sunday are as follows:

- Open Pace Final

- Open Trot Final

- Two-Year-Old Pace Final

- Three-Year-Old Pace Final

- Young Drivers Challenge

- Mares Pace Final

- 1.5 Mile Challenge

- Female Drivers Challenge

- Owner of Horses Challenge

There is also one division of the new Quebec-Plus Series for two-year-old trotters in the sixth race.

Post time is 12:50 pm. For a free race program for Sunday, visit quebecjockeyclub.com. To view the entries, click the following link: Sunday Entries - Hippodrome 3R.

(With files from the Quebec Jockey Club)