Saulsbrook Victor and driver Brett MacDonald captured the $35,714 Winners Over Pace at The Meadowlands on Saturday, March 22, using a blazing third quarter to take control before holding on in a thrilling finish to deny Mad Max Hanover his fifth straight victory.
At the start of the featured race, Huntinthelastdolar (Andrew McCarthy), Saulsbrook Victor, and Write Me A Rose (Mark Herschberger) battled for early control around the first turn, while even-money favourite Mad Max Hanover (Brett Beckwith) pursued wide before settling along the inside.
After Huntinthelastdolar took them past the quarter in :27.1, MacDonald, who recently committed to racing consistently at Woodbine Mohawk Park, sent Saulsbrook Victor to the front, reaching the half in a demanding :54.1. Meanwhile, Mad Max Hanover, who had settled in fourth early, vacated the rail and began inching closer to the leader on the outside. Just after the five-eighths, Mad Max Hanover appeared to stall briefly before Saulsbrook Victor went past three-quarters in 1:21.2. The quick :27.1 third panel had done the trick.
“Brett [Beckwith] didn’t get to me until late on the last turn,” said MacDonald. “I said, well, we’ll see how it goes. Max had been out a long way and when I put him away, I thought he was gone. And then he came back on.”
Saulsbrook Victor paced clear of ‘Max’ when they straightened for the stretch drive, Macs Delight (Todd McCarthy) surged three-wide, while Mad Max Hanover regained momentum and began cutting into the leader’s advantage. For a moment, it looked like Mad Max Hanover would extend his win streak, but the wire came just in time for Saulsbrook Victor, who held on by a nose in 1:50. Mad Max Hanover settled for second, while Macs Delight finished third.
As if beating the best horse in training at The Big M wasn’t enough, the win was the first at The Meadowlands for MacDonald, who is the owner of Saulsbrook Victor.
“It’s one of those places you definitely want to win a race at,” said MacDonald. “It’s a big thing to win a race here.”
Saulsbrook Victor, a seven-year-old gelding by Source Of Pride out of Atlanta Girl, is trained by MacDonald’s father, Ronald. The victory marked the pacer's 30th career win from 117 starts, boosting his lifetime earnings to $661,621. Sent off as the 6-1 third choice, he returned $14 to win.
Todd McCarthy and Jason Bartlett tied for the top driver of the night with three winners each. Jeff Cullipher was the top trainer with a pair of victories.
All-source betting on the 14-race card totaled $3,208,415.
Live racing resumes Friday, March 28 with a first post of 6:20 p.m.
(With files from Meadowlands Racetrack)