Three-year-old pacers were in the spotlight Monday evening at Fraser Downs as the track played host to the finals of the Marian Young Memorial and the Wendall Smith Memorial.
Million Reasons pulled off a 9-1 upset for driver John Abbott in the $28,875 Marian Young Memorial for BC-bred fillies.
The Rick Lancaster trainee left hard from Post 7 and dropped into the pocket behind race favourite Shes Bodacious. That filly chopped out fractions of :27, :56.4 and 1:25.4 before coughing up the lead in the late stages of the contest. Million Reasons only needed to step home in :31.3 to win by a head over Dragon Tale in 1:57.3. Forever Furley rallied from far back to finish third.
Lancaster shares ownership on the daughter of Vertical Horizon-Jennys Big Book with Leslie Godlien and Tom Wood. After being unraced as a rookie, the pacing lass has manufactured a 3-2-0 record from five starts while banking $23,537 in the process.
Itll Be Fine extended his winning streak to four-in-a-row thanks to his dominant performance in the $26,250 Wendall Smith Memorial for BC-bred colts and geldings.
Sent off as the second choice in the wagering, Itll Be Fine marched to the top from Post 6 and never looked back for trainer/driver Rick Lancaster. He chopped out sensible fractions of :29, 1:00.1 and 1:29.3 before using a :28.3 closing quarter to win by 2-3/4 lengths over race favourite A Dudes Promise in 1:58.1. Mystic Hunter rounded out the Trifecta ticket.
Lancaster shares ownership on the son of Hes Watching-Modern Hanover with Ray Soh and Leslie Godlien. The partners watched the gelding improve his sophomore record to 4-1-0 from five tries with the victory. The $13,125 payday bumped his career bankroll to $23,925.
In the $10,000 Fillies & Mares Open it was Moosette posting a mild upset of her own thanks to her come-from-behind triumph for the tandem of driver Brandon Campbell and trainer Jim Marino, who celebrated a three-win performance on the 10-race card.
Campbell got away third with the five-year-old daughter of Hes Watching-Legal Suspensory while Rockin Mystery and the parked out Crush Me battled through fractions of :28.4, :56.3 and 1:25. Campbell pounced on the leaders in the lane and Moosette used a :29.3 closing quarter to win by a half-length margin over race favourite Uptown Hanover in 1:55. Mrs Suhwiggins was third.
Shale Stables of Merritt, BC owns the 14-time winner who now owns a 2-4-0 record from eight trips to the track this season. The $5,000 payday bumped her overall cash stash to $107,338.
To view results for Monday's card of harness racing, click the following link: Monday Results – Fraser Downs.