Ontario Sires Stakes graduate and graded stakes winner Monalishi made a winning return in qualifying action, capping off a six-pack of qualifiers at Woodbine Mohawk Park on a mild, grey spring day on Monday, April 13.

Monalishi, driven by regular reinsman James MacDonald, set fractions of :30.3, 1:00.4 and 1:29.3 before widening her lead through the stretch to more than five lengths as she trotted a :28.1 final quarter to cross the wire in 1:57.4 over the "good" track with a two-second variant. The Grand Circuit stakes-placed mare Zette Athena (Bob McClure) followed in second in her second qualifying start this year with older gelding Chip Happened (Daryl Thiessen) finishing back in third.

An O'Brien Award winner as a two-year-old and runner-up at three, Monalishi has earned nearly $1 million with 10 wins in 21 career starts for trainer Blake MacIntosh and co-owner Tim Klemencic of Trenton, Ont. The daughter of Green Manalishi S and Pretty Phylly G added another Grand Circuit stakes victory to her resume last year winning the New York New York Mile at Yonkers Raceway and took her lifetime mark of 1:52.1 in the Ontario Sires Stakes Super Final at Mohawk. She is eligible to the Armbro Flight Stakes in June at Mohawk.

In the morning's fastest qualifier on the pace, another O'Brien Award runner-up prepped for her 2026 campaign as the Mike Kwietniowski-trained Open mare Grit N Grace was put in play off the gate by Jody Jamieson to lead through a :29.1 first quarter. Veteran pacer Uncle Shank A, driven by Trevor Henry for the Jamie Copley stable, looped to the lead on the backstretch and cleared well past the half in :57.4. Uncle Shank A and Grit N Grace were one-two to three-quarters in 1:27 in a race of their own. Grit N Grace challenged through the stretch in a :27.4 sprint to the wire, but Uncle Shank A persevered at the end by 1-1/4 lengths in 1:54.4. 

A nine-year-old Warrawee Needy-Presidential Night ridgling, Uncle Shank A was claimed for $50,000 on March 21 and got back on track during the Monday morning session for his new connections after making breaks in a pair of recent starts. Copley shares ownership of the career winner of 29 races and more than $350,000 with Kimberly Eaton of Brockville, Ont. and Max Webster Stable of Inverness, N.S.

To view Monday's complete qualifying results, click the following link: Monday Results (Qualifiers) - Woodbine Mohawk Park.

A replay of the video stream from Monday's qualifiers is available below. 

(Standardbred Canada; photo of Monalishi winning in 2025 at Mohawk)