Trainer Chris Lancaster's Georgia Hanover sat off the hot early pace then burst onto the scene in the stretch to take a new lifetime mark in the $16,000 Fillies & Mares Preferred Handicap Pace at Century Downs on Saturday, July 10.
Poker Queen (Phil Giesbrecht), the 9-5 bettors' choice, forged to the front over a host of early leavers, steering two lengths clear of her rivals heading in front of the grandstand in a sizzling :26.3 first panel. Byby Baby Byby (Mike Hennessy) followed in the deuce with Outlawguns N Roses (Drew Campbell) landing third ahead of Outlaw Sharktastic (Nathan Sobey) during the early action.
Poker Queen kept rolling through a :54.3 half and three-quarters in 1:22.4, with Byby Baby Byby sweeping out of the pocket and Outlaw Sharktastic (Nathan Sobey) closing inside to swarm the tiring leader as they raced into the stretch, but it was Georgia Hanover who stole the glory in rein to Logan Gillis. Georgia Hanover, waiting in the wings fifth through the hot early pace, began to advance on the backstretch and rallied by in deep stretch to win in a career-best 1:53 clocking by 1-1/4 lengths over Byby Baby Byby. Outlaw Sharktastic edged out Grey Sea (Kelly Hoerdt), who closed from the back of the eight-horse field, in a show photo while Poker Queen faded to fifth.
Georgia Hanover was let go at odds of 6-1, yielding a win payout of $14.60 for her $2 backers.
The four-year-old mare by Captaintreacherous out of Get Lucky has hit the board in her last six starts, winning the Mares Preferred for the first time two back. She dropped more than one second off her lifetime mark and is now three-for-11 on the season with nine career wins and earnings of nearly $85,000.
To view Friday's harness racing results, click the following link: Friday Results - Century Downs.
(Standardbred Canada)