Returning to action for his four-year-old debut on Saturday night following a three-week layoff, Apprentice Hanover picked up where he left off...scoring another win in Woodbine Racetrack's $34,000 Preferred Pace.
After ending his sophomore season with four consecutive wins, including Northfield Park's Cleveland Classic and a Preferred on Dec. 28 at Woodbine, Apprentice Hanover made it five in a row with a 1:52 effort.
Driven by Jody Jamieson, the heavy 4-5 favourite left from post one and settled away third as Casimir Jitterbug (Doug McNair) and then outsider Modern Legend (Jack Moiseyev) sprinted by into a :27.1 opening quarter. Modern Legend continued to control the pace past the half in :56.1 and three-quarters in 1:24 while Mystician (Billy Davis Jr.) moved underway from the backfield and up to apply pressure around the final turn and into the stretch. However, Jamieson tipped Apprentice Hanover wide down the stretch and soared by to steal the spotlight. Mystician edged out Modern Legend for the runner-up honours two lengths behind.
The son of Somebeachsomewhere, who was named United States Trotting Association's Horse of the Month in December 2013, is trained by Ben Wallace and owned by Brad Grant of Milton, Ont. The win was his 12th in 30 career starts and boosted his bankroll to $529,474.
Apprentice Hanover paid $3.80 to win.
Trainers Carmen Auciello and Corey Johnson and driver Randy Waples led all winners on Saturday's 13-race card with three each.
Prior to the races on Saturday evening at Woodbine, racing fans and customers had the opportunity to meet with some of the finest drivers on the WEG circuit.
Billy Davis Jr., O’Brien Award finalist Sylvain Filion, Jody Jamieson, along with Anthony and James MacDonald greeted fans and offered their thoughts on the race card, different driving styles and racing conditions, equipment changes, the cancellation of the Slots-At-Racetracks program and beyond in a Q & A format.
Beginning at 6 p.m. on the second floor of the Woodbine grandstand, the session ran well within minutes of the first race with numerous questions being offered from fans and customers.
Fans who could not attend offered their questions through Woodbine’s Facebook page along with Twitter using the hashtag #AskTheDriver. Questions were also received via email ([email protected]).
To view Saturday's harness racing, click on the following link: Saturday Results - Woodbine Racetrack.
(With files from WEG)