Doug McNair piloted A Clean Deal up the inside in deep-stretch and emerged from a four-horse cavalry charge to win the lone $140,000 Ontario Sires Stakes (OSS) Gold event for two-year-old filly pacers on Thursday, July 17 at Woodbine Mohawk Park.
The victory kept the daughter of Cattlewash-Ideal Talker undefeated through three lifetime starts and perfect in OSS action. In the first Gold leg on July 4 at Mohawk, A Clean Deal won in a career-best 1:50.4.
The most recent Gold was an action-packed seven-horse affair that essentially became a field of six when 3-2 favourite Shes A Bulldog (Yannick Gingras) made a break on the first turn. A Clean Deal took advantage and led the field to the :27 quarter before relinquishing the lead to Jay (Bob McClure) as they came onto the backstretch. When Th Check Me Out (Tyler Borth) pulled off the pylons, McNair followed suit to create a three-wide race to the :56.2 half which resulted in Th Check Me Out taking the lead and A Clean Deal assuming pocket position.
Th Check Me Out took the field to the 1:23.4 three-quarters with Daya (Jody Jamieson) outside second and A Clean Deal locked-in third. In the stretch, A Clean Deal ($6.40) squeaked through on the inside and out-sprinted Daya to win by a half-length in 1:51.3. Daya finished second over the closing Jen Tilly (James MacDonald).
“Obviously, it was a bit of a chess match,” McNair told Woodbine broadcaster John Rallis in the winner’s circle. “And Yannick [Gingras] making a break [with Shes A Bulldog] early changed things quite a bit. Bob [McClure, driving Jay] made a break leaving the gate as well. So, it was kind of a cavalry charge in the first turn. Then, down the backside, with Tyler [Borth] coming up [with TH Check Me Out], I had no choice but to come back around Bob. And I didn't mind following Tyler.
“In the last turn, I didn't know how much pace [A Clean Deal] had. I left with her and re-moved her. Also, it's a cold night out here. It's cold and windy, it's not hot like it’s been for the last month or so. So, it was a pretty big effort. I never even got the plugs out. I never had time to get them out. When she got clear track, she paced pretty hard to wire.”
A Clean Deal, bred by Winbak Farm and trained by Kyle Fellows, has now earned $148,000 for owners N. Yolanda Fellows of Rockwood, Ont., Blair Corbeil of Leduc, Alta., Windermere Stable LLC of New York, N.Y., and James Ross of Wingham, Ont. A Clean Deal was purchased for $27,027 at last year’s Lexington Selected Yearling Sale.
James MacDonald, Canada's four-time defending Driver of the Year, reached the $80 million earnings milestone on the 10-race card. He won two races and collected a cheque with all but one drive, bringing his career total to $80,006,430.
MacDonald officially reached the milestone in remarkable fashion as Getthegreen rallied from well back after a backstretch break to win the fourth $25,000 OSS Grassroots division for sophomore trotting colts. He put the colt into play third-over after a :28 first panel, but Getthegreen jumped off stride before the half in :58 and dropped far behind the leading group before returning to a trot. Getthegreen caught the field again at three-quarters in 1:27 and produced a massive closing kick, flying by rivals with a :27.3 final quarter to score by 1-3/4 lengths in 1:56.1. Ultra Myles (McClure) finished second with Gaslight Hall (Billy Davis Jr.) third.
Getthegreen, a Roger Mayotte-trained son of Green Manalishi S-Sumthintotalkabout, is now three-for-13 lifetime with $143,288 in earnings for owners Just In Time Stable of Mississauga, Ont., R A W Equine of Burlington, Ont., and Ben Mudry of Toronto, Ont.
MacDonald began his career in 2009 and has since driven 4,158 winners in 29,032 starts. The Guelph, Ont.-based reinsman, who won the 2017 World Driving Championship for Canada, is aiming for his fourth-straight 400-win season and fifth consecutive Driver of the Year title.
There were three other Grassroots divisions of Leg 3B for three-year-old male trotters on the card.
Nickel And Dime ($30.80) upset in the first split, surging down the stretch on the outside to win by a length in 1:55. Travis Henry piloted the Resolve-Parkhill Nocredit gelding for trainer Mark Etsell and owners Frank Lamacchia, Tony Miceli, Deanmar Sons Stable, and Gennarino Lamacchia.
Armstead Fireball ($3.70) battled gamely to victory in the second division by three-quarters of a length in 1:55.1 with Louis-Philippe Roy in the bike. Chantal Mitchell conditions the Muscle Mass-Magical Anna colt for Ottawavalleyracingstable 3.
First Class Rule ($25.60) prevailed in a four-across finish to capture the third division in 1:55.4, a neck ahead at the line. Todd Ratchford drove the gelding by Muscle Mass-Ruling Class for trainer Matt Bax and owners Bax Stable, Glengate Farms, Gaelic Stable, and Ronald Van Noort.
To view Thursday's harness racing results, click the following link: Thursday Results - Woodbine Mohawk Park.
(Ontario Racing & Standardbred Canada)