Friendly Amigo and Mets Inn pulled off a pair of impressive front-end tallies in their respective $40,000 Ontario Sires Stakes Gold eliminations for three-year-old trotting fillies Saturday at Kawartha Downs
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Sent postward at odds of 10-1, Bruce Richardson sent Friendly Amigo gate-to-wire to win her elimination in a career-best 1:55.4 over a track rated ‘good’. The daughter of Amigo Hall-Diminutive, who fired off fractions of :28.3, :57.2 and 1:25.4 in the opener, had built up a six length lead on the field by the half which allowed her to coast to the wire. The time of the mile smashed the former 1:57.1 Kawartha Downs track record for sophomore trotting fillies co-held by Nadirs Pride (1986) and Bucato (2007).
Favourite Elusive Desire (Paul MacDonell) rode the pocket to finish two and quarter lengths behind in second with Magic Sassy (Gord Brown) back in third.
For Friendly Amigo, the win was her fourth in 18 starts this year lifting her earnings to over $222,000. The Blair Burgess pupil has won five times over the course of her career good for $263,397. She will look to earn her second OSS Gold title in next week’s final for owners Robert Burgess of Campbellville and Karin Olsson Burgess of Milton, Ont.
Mets Inn and driver Stephen Byron completed the daily double with an 18-1 upset in the second elimination. The Mutineer-Mets Rival filly left from Post 6 and carved out fractions of :28.1, :58.4 and 1:28.1 en route to a life’s-best 1:59.3 score over a track downgraded to ‘sloppy’.
Favourite Ill Wait For You (Trevor Ritchie) followed the leader to finish a length and quarter behind in second and Novelty As (Gord Brown) rounded out the top three.
Unraced at two, Mets Inn notched her second win in 19 starts bumping her bankroll to $142,493 for trainer John Bax and owner/breeder Winbak Farm of Chesapeake City, Maryland.
Here is a look at the field in post position order for the $130,000 OSS Gold final set for next Saturday, October 10 at Kawartha Downs:
1. Cuddler
2. Magic Sassy
3. Friendly Amigo
4. Elusive Desire
5. Novelty As
6. Mystic River
7. Ill Wait For You
8. Warrawee Kava
9. Mets Inn
AE1. Simply Sterling
AE2. Zorgwijk Java
AE3. Dont Wear Pjs
To view Saturday's harness racing results, click here.