When two-time O'Brien Award winner Logan Park makes his European debut in the 2025 Elitloppet in about eight weeks time, he'll have a familiar set of hands at the controls.
Trot Insider has confirmed that driver Doug McNair will make the trip to Sweden in May to drive Logan Park in the 2025 Elitloppet.
"I would say it's one of — if not the biggest — Standardbred race in the world. It's a huge deal and a big thrill to be a part of it."
McNair competed in Sweden previously during the 2019 World Driving Championship, finishing fourth overall and just 10 points off overall leader Rick Ebbinge. For his career, McNair sports 4,771 victories and nearly $89 million in purse earnings.
Late in 2022, McNair received the driving assignment behind Logan Park and the tandem has been very successful. All told, Logan Park sports a 22-4-2 summary in 37 starts with McNair at the controls.
Co-owner Rob Fellows also confirmed that McNair has been tabbed to driver Logan Park in an interview with Solvalla Racecourse last Thursday (March 20).
"I'm a pretty loyal guy. Doug McNair drove him most of his career...through circumstance he didn't drive him [this year] at Dayton and Lexington and his first start at The Meadowlands — where he was good. Then Dexter [Dunn] had to take his commitment and I got Doug back.
"It's very hard for me to ask [Doug] to school and qualify and race him ready to hand the lines to someone else....I wouldn't want my owners to say 'hey, we've been invited to the Elitloppet, we better give this horse to that trainer — he's a better trainer.' You want to go with the person that got you to the talent that he's at."
And that talent is certainly world class. A son of Archangel - Rite Outa The Park, Logan Park sports a mark of 1:49.2 — making him the fastest Canadian-sired trotter ever — with 36 wins and more than $2 million in purses for trainer Kyle Fellows and owners Outofthepark Stable of Rockwood, Reg Higgs of Blenheim and Arpad Szabo of Bradford, Ont.
"He's pretty much race ready right now," added Fellows in an update on his star trotter. "I'll probably qualify him in a couple of weeks. I've been working backwards from the 25th [of May]. Once I know my plane flights, I'll try to get a schedule for racing...I'd like to race him two or three times before I come over there."
The full interview with Fellows is available below.
(Standardbred Canada)