Twin B Tuffenuff began the defence of his Governor’s Plate crown on a winning note on Sunday afternoon, July 13 at Red Shores at the Summerside Raceway while Miki Shan A and a red-hot Marc Campbell won the other elimination in a record performance.
Twin B Tuffenuff ($4) wired the field in the first of two $9,000 Governor’s Plate eliminations, presented by Summerside Chrysler Dodge, with a 1:53.1 front-end victory for trainer Ron Matheson and owner Patrick Morris of Charlottetown, P.E.I.
Gilles Barrieau engineered the winning trip with the defending champ from post three in the full field of eight, steering the 10-year-old Rock N Roll Heaven-In The Pink gelding through panels of :27.2, :56 and 1:24.2 before holding off a surging Middleton Terror (David Dowling) by three-quarters of a length. Longshot Tony Too Tall (Myles Heffernan Sr.) was a ground-saving third while Roll Em (Marc Campbell) also earned a berth in the $50,000 final scheduled for July 19.
The second $9,000 Governor’s Plate elimination landed squarely in the lap of Marc Campbell as Miki Shan N ($8.80) obliterated the clock with a career best 1:51.4 mile to set a new track record for older pacing stallions, knocking two-fifths of a second off the old record held by YS Mathis, and coming within three-fifths of the overall male record held by gelding Roll Em.
The imported six-year-old son of Always B Miki out of Yankee Dream got away fifth early but took over the lead by the 1:23.1 three-quarters marker and cruised home in :28.3 to win by 4-1/4 lengths for trainer Chris MacKay and owners Kap Singh Racing Stable of Yorktown Heights, New York, Stephen Klunowski of North York, Ont., Earl Hill Jr. of Ohsweken, Ont., and Donald MacRae of Vernon Bridge, P.E.I. Bounty Hunter (Ken Arsenault) rallied to finish a shocking second at odds of 226-1 with High Voltage Deo (Corey MacPherson) rounding out the triactor and Blood Money (Barrieau) getting the final spot in fourth. Race favourite Save America (Ken Murphy) made a break on the lead at three-quarters and did not finish the race.
The $7,000 Ruby Chappell Memorial Open Mares eliminations also took centre stage, with both splits producing tight finishes.
Woodmere Kennedie ($7.20) claimed the first Chappell elimination with a 1:54.4 lifetime best score in line to Marc Campbell for trainer Landon Campbell, getting up in the final strides over pacesetter Sugar Bowl (Barrieau), while Ms Moyse (Adam Merner) surged late for third. Acefortyfourdome (Jason Hughes) also advances to the final. The winning four-year-old daughter of Rollwithitharry out of Four Starz Roe is owned by Mike Pollard of Stratford, P.E.I.
In the other Chappell elimination, Rosetown Mary ($2.70) was perfectly placed by trainer/driver Corey MacPherson to win in a career-best clocking of 1:54. The five-year-old Pang Shui-Brodys Leona mare prevailed from the pocket by 1-1/4 lengths over a blanket finish of Tobins Brownie (Merner), Elm Grove Mistress (Hughes) and Plain Jane (Barrieau) to take her third straight win. Rosetown Mary is owned by Rosetown Stable of Stratford, P.E.I., and Taylor MacPherson of Cornwall, P.E.I.
Marc Campbell dominated the 12-race program, driving a total of six successful starters, with winning parade beginning in the opener as 13-year-old pacer Jetster ($9.60) recorded his 50th career win with a 6-1/4-length romp in 1:56.1. Campbell, who previously trained Jetster for more than four years, drove the Jeremes Jet-Nova Hanover gelding for his current owner/trainer Stanley Harper Jr. of Inverness, N.S. The veteran pacer has collected a dozen wins since joining the Harper stable in 2022 and hit the six-figure career earnings mark this past spring. He now sports a lifetime record reading 50-42-38 from 323 starts.
Campbell’s other winners were pacers Woodmere Sinatra ($3.90) for trainer Chris Davies, Acrobat Hanover ($4.70) for trainer Taylor Doyle and Sharky ($3.50) for Jack McGuirk.
Governor’s Plate Week racing continues on Tuesday evening at 6 p.m. (ADT), featuring the P.E.I. Colt Stakes for two and three-year-old trotters. The program will also feature the official post position draw for the 57th edition of the Governor’s Plate.
To view Sunday's harness racing results, click the following link: Sunday Results - Summerside Raceway.
(With files from Red Shores; photo of Miki Shan N and Marc Campbell winning on July 13)