Daya and Cher Hill both defeated odds-on favourites to win the $150,000 Ontario Sires Stakes (OSS) Gold fourth-leg divisions for sophomore fillies of their respective gaits on Saturday, Aug. 15 at Woodbine Mohawk Park.
Daya posted a 1:49.1 career-best mile and defeated eight-time OSS Gold winner A Clean Deal in the pacing division. The clocking was one-fifth of a second off equalling the OSS record set by Boadicea in 2019.
Sent off as the 7-2 second choice in the field of five, Daya (Bob McClure) chased down A Clean Deal (Doug McNair) in the stretch and won by a head for trainer Jack Darling and owner-breeder Jack Darling Stables Ltd. of Cambridge, Ont.
Daya led the field through the :26.3 opening quarter but relented to 1-5 favourite A Clean Deal before the :54.4 half. McNair kept A Clean Deal on the lead through the 1:23 three-quarters, but Daya sprinted past her foe in deep stretch to record her second Gold victory of the year. Pownal Bay Bobbi (James MacDonald) was two lengths back in third.
In the stretch, McClure appeared completely calm and confident that Daya was going to win.
“I wasn't as confident as him,” Darling told Woodbine broadcaster John Rallis. “But when Bobby came out of that hole, he just sat there like a Sunday drive. He looked like he knew what was going to happen.”
Daya, a daughter of Bulldog Hanover out of Beach Of A Time, now has lifetime earnings of $713,500 and is 7-9-1 in 21 career starts. Her record stands at 2-5-0 in nine 2026 outings. She paid $9.30 to win.
“She’s been good all year, and she raced big last week,” Darling said of Daya’s second-place finish in a $50,000 three-year-old filly open at Mohawk. “It was a heartbreaker when she got beaten in 1:48.4. I would have loved to have that mark, but getting 1:49.1 tonight sure helps.”
Cher Hill earned her first OSS victory of the season as she took the event for filly trotters. Sent off as the 7-2 third choice in the field of seven, the daughter of Muscle Mass out of Lauramarie Hill beat 1-2 favourite Blue Jean Gal (James MacDonald) by two lengths.
Todd McCarthy drove Cher Hill to victory for trainer Gregg McNair and owner/breeder Tom Hill of Hamilton, Ont. Cher Hill had a pocket trip behind second choice Bingo Night (Tyler Jones) through fractions of :27.1, :57.2 and 1:25.2 before taking control of the race before the top of the stretch and holding off a late charge from Blue Jean Gal in the lane. Flowing Tribute (Tyler Borth) was third.
“I was just kind of cautious, just edging her out in the turn, and then when she straightened and I asked her to go on, she gave me a really good kick,” McCarthy told Rallis. “I was still nervous about James on my back there, but the way that [Cher Hill] kind of accelerated at the top of the stretch, I thought that he was going to have to be pretty good to get by tonight. She held up a sprint really well all the way to the line. So full credit to Gregg and having her spot on.”
The victory improved Cher Hill to 6-1-3 in 18 career starts and upped her lifetime bankroll to $279,274. The trotter is now 3-1-1 in eight starts this year. Cher Hill paid $9.60.
Double Breeders Crown champion Amigo Volo became a triple millionaire during the card as the nine-year-old captured a $24,000 conditioned event. James MacDonald opted for a seat early and raced the gelding fifth past a :26.3 quarter before bringing him first-over when prompted by Nasey (Travis Cullen) nearing the :56.1 midway point. Amigo Volo rumbled up to leader My Buddy Sam through the far turn, put a head in front at three-quarters in 1:25.1, and darted clear by 2-3/4 lengths in the last eighth of a mile for the 1:52.2 score. My Buddy Sam held second from Nothingbutadreamer (Todd McCarthy).
Both of Amigo Volo's victories from his 11 outings this season have brought milestones for the son of Father Patrick-Margarita Momma; his other was his 50th lifetime. The trotter has a mark of 1:50.2, taken in at three in the Matron Stakes at Dover Downs. In addition to his two Crowns, the gelding has the Kentucky Futurity, two Matrons and a Pennsylvania Sire Stakes Championship among his list of achievements. Now trained by Meg Crone, Amigo Volo is 51-for-151 lifetime, and Saturday's win brought his earnings to $3,003,366. He returned $2.10.
To view Saturday's harness racing results, click the following link: Saturday Results - Woodbine Mohawk Park.
(Ontario Racing & Standardbred Canada)