Prepping for next weekend's Milton Stakes, the Nick Gallucci-trained Prohibition Legal nosed out stablemate Silver Label for the win in the $36,000 Fillies & Mares Preferred Handicap Pace on Friday, Sept. 6 at Woodbine Mohawk Park.

Coming off back-to-back wins in the top distaff class, Tells On A Roll and Travis Cullen left from the outer wing of the gate between the Gallucci-trained millionaire mares and hit the opening quarter on top in :26.3. She set middle splits of :56.1 and 1:24.2 with Prohibition Legal stalking in the pocket for driver Louis-Philippe Roy while Silver Label advanced first-over from the backfield in rein to Doug McNair. 

Down the stretch, the Gallucci gals swept by with Huntress (Sylvain Filion) closing inside the pair and Caviar N Crackers (Ed Hensley) outside in a four-across finish. Tells On A Roll held on for fifth over 6-5 favourite Sylvia Hanover (Bob McClure).

Prohibition Legal prevailed in the photo finish with Silver Label in 1:51.2, paying $6.20 to win as the 2-1 second choice.

Prohibition Legal has earned a pair of wins and five other top three finishes in the Mohawk Mares Preferred this season along with a fourth-place showing in the Lady Liberty Stakes at The Meadowlands. The Millar Farms homebred mare by Big Jim has banked $93,531 from 10 starts during her five-year-old campaign.

A runner-up in last year's Milton Stakes, Prohibition Legal was entered in this year's $205,000 edition taking place next Saturday, Sept. 14 and will be joined by Silver Label, Sylvia Hanover and Tells On A Roll along with Always B Naughty and Twin B Joe Fresh.

In other action, the remaining $12,000 divisions of the first leg of a Pop-Up Series that were cancelled last Friday due to a late evening thunderstorm were contested with Lord Anthony (Dale Spence) pulling off a 25-1 upset in a 1:51 career-best mile for conditioner Ben Hollingsworth and the David Snowden-trained Control The Power prevailing in 1:52.2 as the 3-1 second choice.

The series is for pacers that are non-winners of $18,000 in 2024 with a minimum of 10 starts or horses not averaging $1,400 per start.

Melissa Lamoureux's Delightful Leader (Doug McNair), who won the only Pop-Up division contested last week as part of the opening round, scored again on Friday night in a similar conditioned class in 1:51.1.

To view Friday's harness racing results, click the following link: Friday Results - Woodbine Mohawk Park.

(Standardbred Canada)