Alritealritealrite and driver Mark Pezzarello won the $5,000 final of the Nova Scotia Governor's Cup Series featuring Cape Breton's top aged pacers during a rescheduled Northside Downs program held on Wednesday afternoon, Nov. 11.
The card was moved to Wednesday afternoon after racing was cancelled on Saturday, Nov. 7.
With Pezzarello aboard for the Governor's Cup Series final, Alritealritealrite fired to the front, fended off a mid-race challenge then held off the late closers to pick up his 12th win since arriving in the Nova Scotia stable of Heather Hawkins earlier this year.
A first-leg winner and the 6-5 favourite in the final, Alritealritealrite left from post two and overtook insider Shir Gain (Rodney Gillis) into the first turn to lead the five-horse field to the quarter in :28.4. After they passed the first pole, Hugh Heff (Randy Getto) made an early move going first-up from mid-pack with Sea Laird (Ryan Campbell) following the cover.
Alritealritealrite took them to the half in :58.2 and remained clear on top at three-quarters 1:27.2 as Hugh Huff started to back off. Turning in the stretch, Shir Gain popped the pocket with Sea Laird flying late on the far outside, but Alritealritealrite held on for the victory in 1:56.3. Sea Laird just missed, finishing second by half a length, with Shir Gain less than a length back in third. Hugh Heff was fourth with the winner's stablemate, Thunder Alley (Keigan Madden), completing the order of finish.
Alritealritealrite returned $4.60 to his backers at the betting windows and completed a natural hat trick on the 11-race card for Pezzarello that was bookended by Hawkins trainees.
The five-year-old son of Lazarus N-Hot Spot Hanover races for Nova Scotia owners Terri Morrison of Marion Bridge, Irwin Claener of New Waterford, Kirk MacRae of Ben Eoin and Angus MacEachern of Howie Center.
Alritealritealrite, a former New Jersey Sire Stakes Championship runner-up as a freshman, now has 15 career wins and $202,678 in earnings from 75 starts.
A $3,000 series consolation was won by Ranked Contender, who circled the field and defeated the front-striding mare Red Rum She Wrote, winner of last year's championship, by three lengths in 1:58.4 for driver Ardon Mofford and trainer/owner Peter MacKinnon. The six-year-old Tobago Cays-Euphoria Seelster gelding was the 6-5 favourite and paid $4.40 to win.
The final card of the 2026 meet at Northside Downs is scheduled for Saturday, Nov. 14 at 12 p.m. (AST).
To view Wednesday's harness racing results, click the following link: Wednesday Results - Northside Downs.
(Standardbred Canada)