Willyorwonthe has been a consistent fixture in the Preferred trotting ranks over the past month at Flamboro Downs. And a look at his lines shows one common element to each of his wins.

Having now made five starts in the Preferred 2 or 3 Handicapped Trots at Flamboro since mid-December, the now six-year-old son of Angus Hall - Mikestory shows a fondness for the inside of the starting gate at the Hamilton-area half-miler. In two starts saddled with the six hole, Willieorwonthe hasn't fared well. However, in the three starts drawing from inside post five he's three-for-three after connecting in the $11,500 Preferred 2 Handicap trot on Thursday (January 10).

After pocketing up behind an eager April Rose (Travis Cullen) through sharp early fractions of :27.3 and :57.1, driver Alfie Carroll picked his spot to right-line Willyorwonthe perfectly down the backside as April Rose started to be asked for more by Cullen heading to the third quarter. Willyorwonthe was on his way to the front through that 1:27.1 third station and opened up a three-length lead turning for home. Both Waikiki Hanover (Marc St. Louis, Jr.) and Absolut Seelster (Scott Young) closed strongly late, but too late to make any dent in the cushion Carroll created with Willyorwonthe, who tripped the timer more than two lengths to the good in 1:57.1.

A homebred owned by Bill Megens of Puslinch, Ont., Willieorwonthe picked up lifetime win no. 23 and bumped his career earnings to $225,965.

Driver J Harris picked up four wins on the card -- four straight wins, in fact -- with the natural four-bagger capped in race five aboard Excellence in the $8,500 Preferred 3 Trot. Harris used rail control to attain position behind second choice Hldontghttoyurdrms (Carroll), who faced pressure for the majority of the mile from favoured Mister Muscle (Robert Shepherd). As Hldontghttoyurdrms held all rivals at bay heading for home, Harris darted Excellence to the passing lane and easily powered away to win by more than a length in 2:01.3. Hldontghttoyurdrms stayed for second with Majestic Brayden (Dagfin Henriksen) stick-handling through horses late for show honours.

Now two-for-two in 2019, 12-year-old Excellence (Kadabra - Carry The Message) boasts 47 lifetime wins and nearly $329,000 in earnings for trainer-owner Ian Downey of St. George Brant, Ont.

To view the charted lines from Thursday's card of harness racing at Flamboro Downs, click the following link: Thursday Results - Flamboro Downs.