Blossom Series Opener In The Books
Three-year-old pacing fillies found themselves in the spotlight Friday evening at Woodbine Racetrack as the Rexdale, Ontario oval hosted the opening leg of the Blossom Series.
Rock N Roll Xample was a comfortable winner in the opening division for the tandem of reinsman Randy Waples and conditioner Shawn Robinson. The heavily-favoured homebred tucked into the two-hole while Noble Jilly hustled the field to the opening quarter in :27.4. Waples had his charge up and driving in the backstretch, and they were released to the top without a tussle. Once on the lead, Rock N Roll Xample lead the group through middle panels of :57.2 and 1:26.2 before unleashing a :27.4 closing fraction to seal the deal in 1:54.1. Noble Jilly was three-quarters of a length back in second, with Deuces For Charity a distant third in the $15,000 affair.
Rock N Roll Xample improved this year’s record to 5-2-1 from 10 trips to the track. The seven-time winner now boasts a bankroll of $58,590 for owner/breeder Bob Hamather of Exeter, Ontario. The three-year-old daughter of Rocknroll Hanover R Xample paid $2.50.
The second division went to Violet Bayama, who was rated perfectly by Sylvain Filion en route to posting the 1:55.3 decision. Filion hustled the Stephane Larocque trainee to the top from Post 5 and stole away with soft fractions of :28.2, :58.1 and 1:27.1. Missevil, who was sent off as the 1-5 favourite, didn’t apply heavy pressure on the leader until the final turn, and by that time the damage was done. Violet Bayama smoked home in :28.2 to fend off Missevil by a length . Wildcat Magic took home the show dough.
The homebred daughter of Somebeachsomewhere-Korrina Bayama extended her winning streak to two-in-a-row for Bayama Farms Inc of Saint-Andre-D’Argenteuil and Jacques Damours of Laval, Quebec. After going winless in five starts as a rookie, the filly has bounced back with a 3-for-9 record to begin her sophomore season. The career winner in excess of $40,000 returned $7.30 to her backers.
To view results for Friday's card of harness racing, click the following link: Friday Results – Woodbine Racetrack.