Driver Finalists In The Spotlight
Driver of the Year bragging rights will be doled out at the annual O’Brien Awards Gala, which is set for Saturday, February 1 at the at the Hilton Mississauga / Meadowvale. In anticipation of the big reveal, finalists Bob McClure and Louis-Philippe Roy have sat down to discuss how they have gotten to this point.
“It’s a real honour just to be nominated,” McClure has told COSA TV. He added in jest that he’s “been beat out twice by a Frenchman” when it comes to being named Canada’s driver of the year, “so here’s hoping I can turn the tide on them.”
Continuing the playful nature of the banter, Roy said, “I kind of feel that same that Bob probably felt last year when he was going against me and knew that I was going to be the O’Brien Award winner.” Roy went on to say, “but just to be nominated, to be [one of] the top two drivers in Canada, is a big honour, so I’m pretty happy that I’m going to be there for the night.”
When asked whether he or Roy ever take their success for granted, McClure summed things up rather succinctly.
“I think that it’s easy to take it for granted, but then you look back,” said McClure. “For me, where I was three years ago was driving ‘B’ tracks and running the roads every night, which I was happy doing. And for Louie, five years ago he was at fair tracks. So it’s easy to take it for granted, but when you look back on it and realize how far both of us have come in a short period of time – obviously, we owe [our success] to a lot of people – it’s very significant and it’s nice.”
The 2019 O'Brien Awards Black Tie Gala takes place on Saturday, February 1, 2020 at the Hilton Mississauga / Meadowvale Hotel in Mississauga, Ontario. Tickets are still available for the O’Brien Awards. To purchase O’Brien tickets, contact:
◈ Kathy Wade Vlaar at [email protected] or 905-858-3060 (Ext. 207).
◈ Hailey Saunders at [email protected] or 905-858-3060 (Ext. 243).
Standardbred Canada has partnered with FitzRoy Dress Rental and Moores for discounts for O’Brien Awards guests.
FitzRoy Dress Rental Discount – Women can rent their dresses from FitzRoy Dress Rentals online or in-store and receive a 15 per cent discount with the promo code OBRIEN15. For an additional fee you can request to have the dress dropped off and picked up at the Hilton Mississauga / Meadowvale Hotel. For complete information, click here.
Moores Tuxedo Discount – Click here for info and flyer.
Keep up to date on the O’Brien Awards and follow the 2019 O’Brien Awards Facebook Page.
This looks a lot like the
This looks a lot like the situation almost 30 years ago when Bill Gale and Doug Brown were in a 'deadheat' for this wonderful award. Bob and Louie both brought honour and distinction to Canadian harness racing with tremendous performances at home and abroad and in a perfect world we will have a 'deadheat' for Driver Of The Year again! For those of us watching from Florida and The Caribbean, keep up the great work and best of racing luck to all in 2020.