The final installment of Announcer Idol was held on Sunday night at Flamboro Downs with Y108's Afternoon Drive Host Brian West back behind the mic in an attempt to defend his title in the contest for charity.
With assistance from track announcer Gary Guy, the inaugural Announcer Idol champion called the evening's third race, which was won by Alan Fair's pacer Pay Later and driver J.R. Plante in 2:01.1.
As the field left the "fabricated folding fence," Fontanas Boy quickly established the early lead over Big Tan, with 2-5 favourite Pay Later getting away third.
West gave the rundown of the field and brushed up on his Grade 6 math through interruptions from his "uninvited assistant" Bob the Colour Commentator as Fontanas Boy led the way through fractions of :28.3, :59 and 1:29.
Meanwhile, Pay Later advanced first over at the half and then battled with the leader down the final stretch.
"It looks like it's going to be a race to the finish for the two," called West as the top two turned for home. "But Pay Later, it looks like he's about to take it...and he does!"
Fan voting will commence on Monday to select this year's Announcer Idol winner, who will receive a donation to the charity of their choice courtesy of Flamboro Downs and Great Canadian Gaming Corp.
Driver James MacDonald was the driving star of the night with four wins on Sunday's 11-race card, including a victory in the $8,500 Preferred 3 Handicap Pace with Glenview Livestock's Lucky King at 10-1 odds. The four-year-old Camluck gelding, who is trained by Andrew McCabe, brushed wide approaching the third quarter mark and kicked away by five and three-quarter lengths to win in 1:55.2 over Astute and Ari Allstar.
MacDonald's luck ended in the final race though when he was involved in a minor incident as Marty Fine trainee Screen The Call broke stride while racing wide into the first turn and took a tumble. MacDonald, who managed to stay in the race bike during the incident, confirmed with Trot Insider that Screen The Call was not seriously injured, suffering only superficial scraps from the fall. No other horses were involved. Big N Bad won the race, giving Travis Henry a driving double on the night.
To view Sunday's harness racing results, click on the following link: Sunday Results - Flamboro Downs.