Overlooked at odds of 15-1, Lit De Rose delivered her second consecutive winning performance in the $32,000 Fillies & Mares Preferred Handicap Pace at Woodbine Mohawk Park on Friday night (December 4).
Favourite Sweet Heaven (Sylvain Filion), a recent addition to the Ben Baillargeon barn, made a brief appearance on the front end as she looped early leader Kendall Seelster (Jody Jamieson) after a :26.4 quarter. However, Major League N (Ed Hensley) was hot on her heels and she quickly took over to clock middle splits of :54.4 and 1:23. On the final turn, Sweet Heaven popped the pocket with 53-1 shot Better Be Donna N (Jonathan Drury) approaching and Lit De Rose on her cover after sitting sixth in the early going for catch-driver Chris Christoforou.
With Major League N throwing in the towel down the stretch, the millionairess Kendall Seelster was relentless along the pylons, but the Richard Moreau-trained Lit De Rose rallied home from third-over to prevail in 1:51.4 by three-quarters of a length. Better Be Donna N finished third over late-closers Born A Dragon (Travis Cullen) and Bestseller Hanover (Louis-Philippe Roy), with Sweet Heaven sixth. The 10-horse field was spread over just 3-1/4 lengths at the finish.
A Preferred winner last time out on November 20, Lit De Rose was overlooked at odds of 15-1 and paid $32.60 to win.
She now boasts wins in three of her last four starts and is eight-for-17 this year. The five-year-old Leader Bayama mare, who was runner-up in the Milton Stakes earlier this fall for the biggest payday of her career, has won 20 races and $293,962 in purses lifetime for owner/breeder Guy Corbeil of Mirabel, Que.
The victory was part of a training triple on the 11-race card for Canada's leading conditioner Moreau, who also scored with four-year-old pacing mares Sophist ($8.50, Sylvain Filion) and Sylph Hanover ($5.90, Doug McNair).
To view Friday's harness racing results, click on the following link: Friday Results - Woodbine Mohawk Park.