Jackets Required got redemption for his first-round disqualification in The Diplomat Pacing Series by winning the lone $25,000 division in the second leg on Saturday night at Woodbine Racetrack

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The compact son of Allamerican Ingot - Eve Of The Ball took control of the race, which is open to three-year-old colts and geldings, from the outset and jetted to command for driver Randy Waples from Post 6 through a first quarter of :26.3 with last week’s winner, Mcaracas (Mario Baillargeon), taking back to sixth position.

Jackets Required had Affleck (Rick Zeron) on his outside but not advancing in the second quarter, so Waples took advantage of the situation and backed the half off to :56.3. Meanwhile, Mcaracas, who had also moved to the outside, was forced to make an early three-wide move around the stalled challenger.

Mcaracas came with a rush and got about half a length past Jackets Required in the third quarter before getting out of gear and putting in some rough steps. Waples, sensing this, asked his colt for more and he regained command at three-quarters in 1:23.3 at which point Mcaracas rolled off stride and took himself out of it.

In the stretch, Jackets Required rebuffed one last challenge from Top Gear (Sylvain Filion) to score by 1-1/4 lengths in 1:51.3. It was another five lengths back to Legal Justice (Jack Moiseyev), who finished third. The winner returned $9.80 as the second choice in the wagering.

“You know he [Jackets Required] got tossed out last week, so we had to get a big chunk of it to get into the final,” said Waples. “You know he got out of there good and it just worked out my way. I was trying to go as much as I could on the front end and then when I saw Ricky’s [Zeron] horse [Affleck] labouring out of there from the nine hole I just used him as a bit of a pick for a while. When he came I just decided to leave him out on the turn and roll the dice. It worked out good.”

The victory was the fourth in just six trips postward this season for Jackets Required, who is co-owned by trainer Bob McIntosh along with Al McIntosh Holdings Inc. of Leamington, ON. The winner’s share of the purse boosted his bankroll to just over $36,000.

Jackets Required finished second in the opening round of the series but was subsequently placed back to seventh for causing interference while on a break just past the half.

To view complete reaction from Randy Waples, click here.

The $80,000 The Diplomat Pacing Series final will go postward next Saturday night from Woodbine.

In Open action, the Gord Irwin-trained Bigtime Ball rolled to the lead from third after Major Hottie (Mark MacDonald) put up a :25.4 opening quarter, and then sailed past panels of :54.1 and 1:22.1 to record his second straight victory in 1:49.1. Canada’s 2009 Older Horse of the Year prevailed by 1-1/4 lengths over Major Hottie and Panmunjom (Randy Waples).

Bigtime Ball returned $2.30 to win as the odds-on favourite. The eight-year-old son of Presidential Ball-Keystone Trinidad, driven by Paul MacDonell, is owned by the Irwin Stables of Cobourg, ON. The lion’s share of the $42,000 purse pushed his earnings to $52,500 this season and $1,153,673 lifetime.

Windsong Filou lowered her mark to 1:51.3 in winning the $38,000 Fillies & Mares Open Pace earlier on the card. The four-year-old Astreos-Jasper Avenue fired off the gate from Post 5 and took the field to the first quarter in :28.1, but Arts Diva (Paul MacDonell) pulled the pocket and swept around the early leader with A And Gs Confusion (Mark MacDonald) following and gaining control at the :56.1 half.

As the field headed to three-quarters in 1:24.3, Arts Diva moved off the pylons again with Windsong Filou following. The latter prevailed in the three-path thanks to a :26.2 final effort. Arts Diva finished three-quarters of a length behind and Voelz Hanover (Mario Baillargeon) came on for third.

Windsong Filou returned $7.50 to win as the 5-2 second choice. Vito Frijia, Bill, Frank and Harry Loyens all share ownership of the winning mare, who is trained by Shawn Robinson. The victory was Windsong Filou’s fourth in 14 tries this season pushing her earnings over the $100,000 mark.

To view Saturday's results, click here.

(With files from WEG)