Marc Campbell parked 3-5 favourite Casimir Richie P through quick fractions and bottomed-out the field in progress to a 1:51.4 victory with Time To Dance in the $60,000 Gold Cup & Saucer Final on Saturday (Aug. 22) at Charlottetown Driving Park.
Launching from post 2, Time To Dance dashed to the front around pylon-starter Lisburn as Casimir Richie P attempted to roll to the lead moving up the backstretch. However Time To Dance and Lisburn sealed any potential holes for Casimir Richie P, keeping the favourite hung past a :26.2 quarter and into a :54.1 half.
“It’s not how I thought the race would end up,” Campbell said after the race. “I figured if I made [the] front I’d let Dale [Spence & Casimir Richie P] go. I was going to stretch him out a little bit, but he never really got close to me. Then I said ‘Well, I got to try and get a breather in here and see what happens.”
Casimir Richie P began to drop out of contention up the backstretch as the field moved for three-quarters. Lisburn continued to chase Time To Dance from the pocket moving to three-quarters in 1:23.3 while Screen Test had room to tip off the pegs and take his shot, but then soon began to lose ground into the final turn.
Into the stretch Time To Dance had Lisburn to turn away as Woodmere Ideal Art dove into the passing lane to give pursuit from third. Lisburn dug into the leader’s margin through the stretch but Time To Dance held firm to give trainer-driver Marc Campbell his third victory in the Gold Cup & Saucer. Woodmere Ideal Art finished third with Simple Kinda Man fourth.
“He’s pretty tough off the front; we’ve got him off the front a couple of times before,” Campbell said after the race. “And he’ll dig—he’ll fight right to the wire. He’s been getting better and better every week; he keeps getting stronger on us. He’s really maturing into a nice horse.”
A four-year-old gelding by A Rocknroll Dance, Time To Dance won his sixth race from 18 starts this season and his 13th from 47 overall, earning $105,613. Brent Campbell and Matthew McDonald own the gelding who paid $6.90 to win.
The Gold Cup & Saucer evening card featured a slew of top-class events, including a pair of $12,500 divisions of the Joe O'Brien Memorial Gold for three-year-old pacing colts and geldings.
Imalookertoo dashed from the pocket to win the first division of the O'Brien Memorial in 1:55.2. The Shadow Play colt, sent the 3-5 favourite, sat pocket as Windemere Frank took the field through a clip of :28.2, :57.3 and 1:27.2. In the stretch driver Marc Campbell fed Imalookertoo racetrack and dashed by to a one-and-a-quarter length win with Little Manny third.
Owned by Robert Sumarah, Imalookertoo won his second race from seven starts this season and his eighth from 17 overall, earning $17,191. Daniel Romo trains the $3.30 winner.
Tobins Rebel took the other division of the O'Brien Memorial going wire to wire in 1:54.3. Trainer-driver Gilles Barrieau cleared control with the Camystic gelding from post 5 and led through splits of :27.2, :56.1 and 1:25.2 with The Big Chase sitting the pocket. Coming for the finish The Big Chase lunged for the lead late but finished a head shy in second, with Nothing To Prove closing up the inside for third.
Winning his sixth race from eight starts this season and his 12th from 16 overall, Tobins Terror has earned $76,432 for owner Daniel Ross. He paid $3.10 to win.
Dreamfair Zenfire pulled an 11-1 upset in the Confederation Mares Invitational Series Final, winning in 1:55.1. Driver Jason Hughes secured the pocket with the Marc Campbell trainee while her stablemate Arc Light sat fifth to a :29 first quarter set by Berazzled. Campbell, driver Arc Light, tipped first over moving to a :58.1 half and pressured the pacesetter to three-quarters in 1:26.3. At the top of the stretch Arc Light powered past Berazzled but failed to hold off her stablemate, as Dreamfair Zenfire shot to a two-and-a-quarter length victory. Berazzled faded to third.
A four-year-old mare by Sunfire Blue Chip, Dreamfair Zenfire won her fifth race from 12 starts this season and her 11th from 55 overall, earning $88,613. Ryan and Everett MacLeod own the $25.30 winner.
Misty Memory N went wire to wire in the $4,000 Confederation Mares Invitational Series Consolation. A seven-year-old mare by Real Desire, Misty Memory N carved fractions of :28.2, :58.3 and 1:26.4 in progress to a 1:54.4 win by two-and-a-half lengths over pocket-sitter Ashestodiamonds. Yves Sarrazin, Donald Mac Rae and Allard Racing Inc. own the now nine-time winner with $28,903 banked. The Chris MacKay trainee returned $3.50 to win in rein to Jason Hughes.
A $4,000 Open Trot and $4,000 Preferred 1 Pace also went on the stakes-laden program. Mile Hill Willie delivered as the favourite with a near-wire-to-wire 1:56.3 job in the Open Trot, collecting his third win from four starts this season and his 15th from 28 overall, growing his bankroll to $48,405 for owners John Breau and trainer Paul Morrison. Gilles Barrieau drove the $4.40 winner.
The mile ties Freddie’s overall track trotting record and lowers Mile Hill Willie’s record of fastest Maritime-bred trotter ever in Atlantic Canada that he set in his last start.
In the Preferred 1 Pace, Rockin Indy capitalized off a pocket trip to score in 1:55.1 over Pillage And Burn, who rallied from first over but settled for second by a quarter length. The seven-year-old Rockin Image gelding competes for owner-trainer Troy Murray and won his fourth race from 17 starts this season and his 29th from 137 overall, earning $90,766. Corey MacPherson steered the $5.40 winner.
To view Saturday's harness racing results, click on the following link: Saturday Results - Charlottetown Driving Park (Evening).