A backstretch sweep to the lead by Fashion Frenzie proved the winning move in the breeze of the Saturday (Sept. 11) card at Woodbine Mohawk Park as the elimination winner scored a 1:53.2 victory in the $240,000 Goodtimes Final.

Floating into fourth to a :27.2 first quarter, driver Louis-Philippe Roy quickly sent Fashion Frenzie for the front spinning into the backstretch. He took over command from early leader Publicity Seeker as 4-5 favourite Dancinginthedark M marched uncovered towards the leader to a :56.3 half.

Dancinginthedark M ranged to Fashion Frenzie’s wheel while tossing a few fumbling strides around the final turn, soon then breaking to a gallop and leaving Fashion Frenzie alone on the point. The Archangel gelding clicked three-quarters in 1:24.3 and cruised away in the stretch, opening his lead and crossing the beam under wraps while Ritson charged from the back to take second. Publicity Seeker held third and On A Streak snuck into the mix for fourth.

“The six horse [Tim] Tetrick was driving… I think the only way to beat him is to make him a little warm or something,” Roy said after the race. “That’s what actually happened in the last turn. When I saw him coming first up I said ‘Well, if he comes to me easy and we turn it into a battle in the stretch…’ I mean, I’m pretty confident in my horse, but that horse looked pretty good too last time, even when racing in the States. When I saw him coming, that was game on right there. We hit three-quarters in 1:24 there and Timmy made a break. From out there, I was pretty confident that my horse was going to get us home.

“I really fell in love with the horse, especially this year,” Roy also said, having booked off Fashion Frenzie as a two-year-old for Logan Park but now being reunited with the Richard Moreau trainee. “Earlier in the season, he felt like he was a little bit crazy in the post parade, going to the gate. Like I said in every interview, he’s just been smarter and smarter. Now the trip he did today, I could have let him in the hole; I could’ve done whatever I wanted with him. It’s a big asset to have on a trotter.”

Owned by Ecurie Francis Richard Inc., Mario Bourgea, Pierre Guillemette and Sylvain Richard, Fashion Frenzie won his fifth race from nine starts this season and his 10th from 16 overall, pushing his earnings to $529,765. He paid $7.00 to win.

The Goodtimes is named in honour of one of the best trotters ever bred in Ontario and a member of the Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame who won more than $2 million during his career, which was then a record for a Canadian-bred trotter. Goodtimes recently celebrated his 30th birthday at the farm of his only trainer during his career, John Bax, who was on hand tonight to present the Goodtimes trophy as he has been every year.

The Goodtimes Final is part of a stakes-packed card anchored by the 2021 Pepsi North America Cup. Read all the recaps from Cup night in the 2021 Pepsi North America Cup News Centre.

(with files from WEG)