Ontario invader Duke Did It romped to a 1:53.2 track record-equalling triumph in the $7,500 Exhibition Cup Invitational to close out Saturday's action-packed card of Atlantic Grand Circuit Week harness racing at Truro Raceway.
Duke Did It matched the all-aged track record set by Dunachton Gale in 2006 and also equalled by Formal Affair in 2010.
Driven by Todd Trites, Duke Did It established the lead post four and carved out fractions of :26.4, :55.1 and 1:23.4 en route to the record triumph. He widened his leading margin to six lengths entering the stretch and crossed the wire five and a quarter lengths ahead of the rallying Red Rock and Gary Chappell, who were the 5-2 race favourites. Duke Did It paid $9.30 to win as the 7-2 third choice. Touch Of Lightning and Earl Smith rounded out the top three finishers nearly nine lengths behind as they came from last to show.
"He left out of there so good," said Trites after the race. "That horse hasn't raced on a half-mile track to my knowledge so I wasn't really sure what he would be like until I got into the first turn and he was as good as gold. He was as good as they told me he would be. I tried to get reasonable fractions through the middle, but he felt pretty good and I knew we had a shot at the three-quarter pole and I kind of wanted to get that record so I let him roll down the lane and he dug in. He's just a real nice little horse."
The nine-year-old Bettors Delight gelding was making his Maritimes debut off three straight wins at Rideau Carlton Raceway for owner/trainer Richard Sullivan of Greely, Ont. He earned his 34th career victory and bumped his bankroll to $324,973.
Three-year-old pacer Say It Again Sam continued his undefeated season by scoring his ninth straight victory in the $6,250 final of the Harris Home Hardware Series for Foxyhall Racing of Wallace, N.S.
The Well Said gelding retook the lead near the three-eighths mark and held off Fedora by a neck in 1:56.1 with Arizona Bucks finishing three lengths behind in third.
"He's a pretty impressive colt," said winning trainer/driver Jason Hughes. "He can get a little lazy on the front end there. He races a lot on the front. We have to start racing him out of the hole maybe every now and then, but today I put him on the front end and he was pretty strong."
Lady McCardle survived a first over journey and wore down pacesetter Coral Sea in the final strides to win the $5,475 final of the Budweiser Claiming Series, which was contested over an extended distance of 1-1/2 miles. The winning time was 3:05.1. Trainer/driver David Floyd Carey co-owns the nine-year-old mare, who also won her 1-1/4 mile second leg division, with his son Craig David Carey and Darren McDonald.
Truro Raceway also hosted three $6,920 "A" Atlantic Sires Stakes divisions for three-year-old pacing colts and geldings.
Owned and bred by Don Smith of Brookside, N.S., Rancousy earned his third ATSS victory of the season. The Western Paradise-Too Spicy For You colt was a dominant wire-to-wire winner in a career-best clocking of 1:56 with trainer/driver Darren Crowe. Touch Of Thunder and Super S Yzerman followed in second and third.
"We kept him in this winter -- we didn't turn him out anywhere -- and I think that really helped him," said Crowe of the winning colt, who has hit the board in all eight of his sophomore starts.
Pulling off a 20-1 upset as the longest shot on the board, Just A Professor got away third early on and rallied home off cover to win his first ATSS division of the year in a career-best 1:56.4 with Clare MacDonald catch-driving. Rebelseven and Tobins Fusion finished second and third, respectively. The Full Scholarship-Just A Drop colt is owned by trainer John Clarey and Michael Clarey of Montague, P.E.I. as well as Creston Gillis of Belle River, P.E.I.
Mr Vaive and trainer/driver Bernard McCallum went wire-to-wire to win the other "A" division in 2:02.2 with Woodmere Artisan slipping up the pylons to place half a length behind. First over challenger Silverhilldiamond finished third. The Coastocoast Yankee-First To Fly gelding earned his first ATSS victory for Windsor, N.S. owners Peter, Gregory and Debbie Francis.
Driver Danny Romo swept the $2,500 "B" divisions, winning with the Fred Saunders-trained Wishes In The Rain (Western Paradise-Jema Bonofide) in 1:59.2 and his own trainee Romeo Lover (Western Paradise-Love Actually) in 1:59.4.
To view Saturday's harness racing results, click on the following link: Saturday Results - Truro Raceway.