Xlb Patrick continued to show that he is a strong contender in the Preferred class with his wire-to-wire victory in the $20,000 event at Woodstock Raceway this afternoon.

Driven by Brad Forward, the eight-year-old gelding out of Davids Pass took command of the field before reaching the quarter pole in :27.2. The Mark Austin trainee posted a :57 half and had a head margin over the first-up challenger Berts Casey (Marc St. Louis, Jr.) in 1:26.2. The post time favourite pulled away in the stretch by a length to win in 1:55.2.

Berts Casey stayed for second and Coreys On Crombie (Doug McNair) was third.

Xlb Patrick now has a total of 51 wins to his name and boasts a bankroll of $522,839 for owner Michael Cecile of Windsor, Ont. In 25 starts this year, he has only finished out of the money three times.

To view Saturday's results, click here.