Impatient to join harness racing’s 1,000-wins club, Anthony Haughan sealed the deal on a very special milestone in his first drive of the night at Flamboro Downs on Sunday evening.
Positioning himself well right off the gate, Lil Royas Kd and Haughan scored a pocket trip. At the head of the stretch, Haughan drove on to claim victory by two and a quarter lengths in 2:01.4. The five-year-old Lis Mara mare is trained by Rick Deacon of Kitchener, who co-owns with Andrew Rogers of Mississauga.
The milestone win was Haughan’s 34th of the year and the first of two on the Sunday card. The resident of Cambridge, Ontario rounded out the program with a second victory in the tenth with Lucky Regal, scoring a wire to wire win in 1:58.1.
A native of Dublin, Ireland, Haughan decided to try his hand in harness racing in Canada in the late 1990’s. Canada found its way into his heart, becoming the place to be for the horseman. Returning in 2000, his stay of a few months turned into a permanent affair.
Haughan has driven the winners of over $7.5 million in purse earnings over the last fifteen years.
Flamboro Downs also played host to the Preferred 2 Fillies & Mares in contention for a $10,000 purse. Robert Shepherd cruised to victory with his mare Russian Kisses for trainer Isabelle Darveau. Sent out from the two hole, Shepherd got away fourth. Making a move early, the pair claimed the lead by the three-quarter mark before pacing away in 1:55.3. The favourite paid $1.40 to win.
The Darveau-Shepherd partnership nabbed the Preferred 3 for Colts & Geldings to round out the card. Leaving from post two, Shepherd guided Astute to a wire-to-wire victory in 1:54.2. Darveau also owns the Astreos gelding.
To view Sunday's harness racing results, click on the following link: Sunday Results - Flamboro Downs.