Ontario Sires Stakes graduates No Control and Tuscan Prince headlined the Monday, April 1 qualifying session at Woodbine Mohawk Park.
Prepping for his four-year-old campaign, No Control kicked off the morning action with a wire-to-wire victory in 1:52.3 with Sylvain Filion aboard for trainer Tan Micallef.
In his second qualifier this year, No Control took control of a field of eight pacers and carved out fractions of :28, :56.4 and 1:25 before extending his lead to 4-1/4 lengths through a :27.3 final frame to post the fastest mile of the morning. Preferred pacer Uhtred, who hasn't raced since a pair of starts more than a year ago, finished second in his second qualifier amid a comeback. O'Brien Award finalists Emmetts Buddy (third) and season-debuting four-year-old mare One Last Wish (fifth) were also prepping for their return to the races.
No Control (Control The Moment-Dani Hanover) swept last year's Ontario Sired Spring Series and took a mark of 1:50.3 while winning his first four of eight starts during an abbreviated sophomore season that also included a pair of OSS Gold top-three finishes. He earned the bulk of his $108,757 bankroll in 2023 for Micallef and partners Keira Liberte, Ian Clarke and James Clarke.
Tuscan Prince topped the trotters with a 1:58 front-striding score with Louis-Philippe Roy in the bike for trainer Luc Blais and owner Determination.
Making his second qualifying start of his four-year-old season, Tuscan Prince crossed to command and led a field of eight trotters through fractions of :29, 1:00.3 and 1:30.1 then sprinted home in :27.4 while keeping clear of pocket-pursuer Amigo Volo, a double millionaire who went three-for-three in Preferred action during the month of February, and a first-up Ghostly Casper, his OSS rival and the O'Brien Award divisional champion.
Tuscan Prince (Kadabra-Tosca) was a two-time OSS Gold winner and runner-up to Ghostly Casper in the Super Final last year during his $240,594 sophomore season.
Roy, Blais and Determination also teamed up with the unraced three-year-old pacing gelding Vincendi Blue Chip, who won his second qualifying start by three-quarters of a length in 1:56.4. He closed out the mile with a :27.4 final quarter to retake the lead from New York stakes winner Choice Is Yours in deep stretch.
A $170,000 Lexington Select Sale yearling purchase, the Bettors Delight son is out of Western Filly Pace champion Incredible Beauty. Vincendi Blue Chip's dam is an Art Major sister to millionaire stallion Sportswriter and a full sibling to Grand Circuit stakes-winning fillies Precocious Beauty and Prescient Beauty.
Blaine Thibeau's homebred Atlantic stakes champion Miss Wicked (McWicked-Deviliciously Good) made her sophomore debut in Ontario a winning one during the morning's qualifying session with a 4-1/4-length victory in 1:59 for driver Trevor Henry and trainer Joseph Baxter.
To view Monday's complete qualifying results, click the following link: Monday Results (Qualifiers) - Woodbine Mohawk Park.
Woodbine streamed qualifiers from races four through 10. The replay is available below.
(Standardbred Canada; Photo of No Control winning last year at Mohawk)