Woodbine Mohawk Park was buzzing on Tuesday morning (July 4) with a busy 17-race qualifying session featuring stars prepping for upcoming Grand Circuit stakes and two-year-olds getting ready to launch their racing careers.
Ontario Sires Stakes graduate Prohibition Legal and her two-year-old sister This Magic Moment both won their second consecutive qualifying starts this season for trainer Nick Gallucci and breeder Millar Farms.
Prepping for her four-year-old campaign, Prohibition Legal and Louis-Philippe Roy repelled last month's Fan Hanover Stakes-winning sophomore filly Sylvia Hanover (Bob McClure) and older mare Settn A Precedent (Austin Sorrie) in a :25.4 final quarter sprint.
Prohibition Legal set fractions of :30.1, :58.3 and 1:26.3 before the sprint to the finish with Sylvia Hanover out of the three-hole and pocket-pursuer Settn A Precedent up the inside. The Big Jim-Catch A Wish mare with more than $800,000 in career earnings prevailed by 1-1/4 length in 1:52.2.
Gallucci told Trot Insider that current plans are to race Prohibition Legal at Mohawk before testing stakes company while Steacy confirmed Sylvia Hanover, the millionaire Always B Miki-Shyaway filly owned by Hudson Standardbred Stable, is being pointed to the Mistletoe Shalee, which takes place on July 15 at The Meadowlands.
Both Prohibition Legal and Sylvia Hanover were O'Brien Award-winning two-year-olds.
Prohibition Legal's little sister This Magic Moment was a 1:55.4 winner in her baby race, overtaking mid-race leader Millies Spirit in the stretch by 2-1/4 lengths with a :26.4 final quarter in rein to James MacDonald.
Resilience was not only the fastest two-year-old winner of the morning but she became the fastest freshman winner to date in Canada so far this year. Trained by Eric Nadeau, the Jimmy Freight-Mia Seelster filly made amends for a miscue in her qualifying debut on June 23 by pacing to a national season's record of 1:53.1.
Quick off the gate out in post seven, she crossed to the pylons approaching the first turn and was up by eight lengths at the quarter in :28.2 then held a commanding lead through middle splits of :57.1 and 1:25.2 before closing it out with a :27.4 final frame for the 5-3/4-length victory. Louis-Philippe Roy drove the promising youngster for his partners, Ecurie Francis Richard Inc. and Ecurie CSL. Its A Love Thing and Control The Fire rounded out the top three finishers.
Gone Goodbye topped the rookie trotters during the morning session with a 1:58.4 score, kicking home in :28.4 off a loose pocket trip to reel in leader Beach Bank and draw three lengths clear off fractions of :29.4, :59 and 1:29.1.
Gone Goodbye was among a pair of two-year-old debuting winners for the father-son, trainer-driver team of Bob and Scott Young. Bob Young co-owns with Father Patrick-Eunice colt, who was a $45,000 purchase from the Lexington Selected Sale, with Frank Chiaravalloti, Alvin Storey and Glengate Farms.
Premier Heiress, a homebred Stay Hungry-Premier Mirage filly owned by Premier And Associates Farm, also won her qualifier in 1:56.2 for Team Young.
Down Under import Masons Delight N capped off the Tuesday qualifying action with a 1:50.4 mile, leading wire-to-wire in his second charted mile on Canadian soil for trainer Carmen Auciello and MT Stables Ontario. Jody Jamieson drove the eight-year-old New Zealand-bred son of American Ideal who brings a record of 15 wins from 95 starts and $86,386 in earnings into his North American campaign.
To view Tuesday's complete qualifying results, click the following link: Tuesday Results (Qualifiers) - Woodbine Mohawk Park.
A replay of Mohawk's qualifying session is available below.
To view Tuesday's qualifying results, click the following link: Tuesday Results (Qualifiers) - Woodbine Mohawk Park.