Alberta Sires Stakes stars Credit Card Junkie and Blue Star Beauty, who finished 1-2 in the first Alberta Princess leg, dominated the eliminations for the Alberta Diamond on Saturday afternoon at Alberta Downs.
Trainer-driver Keith Clark rolled three-year-old pacing filly Credit Card Junkie to the top after a post nine start in the first $11,250 elimination and cruised past fractions of :28.2, :59 and 1:28.1 en route to the one length victory in 1:56.4. Minettas Gidget (John Chappell) finished second off a pocket trip and As Hot As Promised (J.F. Gagne) came in third. Cool One (Don Monkman Jr.) and Smoky Moon (James Junquist) finished fourth and fifth.
Credit Card Junkie paid $3 to win as the hevay 1-2 favourite. The Camystic-Best Promise filly, owned and bred by Clark, Doris McDougall of Cochrane, Alta., and Calgary's Verne Rea, boasts a record reading 8-7-1 in 16 starts during her debut season and purse earnings totalling $74,799.
With Bill Tainsh Jr. in tow, Blue Star Beauty blasted off the gate from post seven in the following elimination and carved out fractions of :28.3, :58.1 and 1:26.3 while extending her leading margin to eight lengths. The overwhelming 1-2 favourite left her filly foes in the dust as she powered home for the 1:55 triumph. Down Home Stylish (Kelly Hoerdt) was the best of the rest coming in second and Born With A Grin (James Jungquist) completed the top three finishers. Cloud Nine (Bobby Clark) and Outlaw Blue Danube (Deborah McLeod) were fourth and fifth.
Blue Star Beauty also paid $3 to win. The As Promised-Whitesand Secret miss is trained by Doug Stout for owner Derek Stout of Camrose, Alta. The 2011 Alberta Sired Freshman Filly of the Year now has 10 wins and four seconds in 14 career starts and a bankroll totalling $141,731.
In this week's $8,500 Open Pace, favourite Trust The Artist went wire-to-wire to win for the third consecutive time for trainer-driver Kelly Hoerdt and fellow Beaumont, Alta. partners Blair Corbeil and Mike McAllister. The eight-year-old son of Real Artist established the lead from post four and cruised past panels of :27.4, :56.3 and 1:24.4 en route to the 1:53.3 victory over Smart Shark (Connie Kolthammer) and Timberline Court (Gerry Hudon). The 46-time career winner now boasts a bankroll of $531,434.
To view Saturday's harness racing results, click on the following link: Saturday Results - Alberta Downs.