Undefeated two-year-old pacing colt Sweet Lovin Lou starred in the $79,000 Dream Maker Series final while In The Spotlight N stole the spotlight from a famous filly in the weekly Fillies & Mares Preferred Pace during an action-packed Friday, Aug. 8 card at Woodbine Mohawk Park.
Back in action after a dominant victory in the opening leg of the Dream Maker two weeks ago, 1-9 favourite Sweet Lovin Lou lowered his lifetime mark to 1:50.4, holding off :26.4 first-quarter leader Dad after advancing to the top from fourth and controlling middle splits of :55 and 1:22.3. Dad (Louis-Philippe Roy) settled for second in the final after his round two victory, with Stingray Deo (Travis Henry) third.
"I've loved him since he qualified," said MacDonald after Sweet Lovin Lou's victory before taking off to his native Prince Edward Island for Old Home Week. "I thought he was probably the best baby I'd sat behind. He's versatile. He doesn't love the front -- he kind of gets looking around and doesn't really know what to do -- but when Louis's horse came to call and I asked him, he didn't want to let him by, so that's a good sign, and there's a lot of big money coming up and hopefully he's primed and ready for it."
Dan Lagace trains and co-owns Sweet Lovin Lou with Edwin Buhler of Wantagh, New York, Big Als Stables of Woodbridge, Ont., and Brooke & Brady Lagace of Cambridge, Ont. A $97,222 yearling purchased from the 2024 Standardbred Horse Sale, the Sweet Lou-Lovers Dream colt has already earned $57,500 in his first three career starts.
In The Spotlight N stole the spotlight from a pair of streaking stars for a 20-1 upset in this week's edition of the $36,000 Fillies & Mares Preferred Pace, as Caviar N Crackers had her four-race win streak in the top distaff class snapped and reigning Horse of the Year Chantilly's 13-race career streak came to an end up against older rivals.
Driven by J.R. Plante, In The Spotlight N made an early move at the :27 quarter to overtake the usual Preferred leavers, Grit N Grace (Jody Jamieson) and Glenboro (Travis Cullen). She was forced three-wide briefly in her charge to the top as Grit N Grace looped Glenboro, but pressed on to make front and held command through a :55.4 half and three-quarters in 1:23.1.
Meanwhile, 1-5 favourite Chantilly (James MacDonald), who landed in fifth from the outside post seven, was shuffled to last as Caviar N Crackers (Ed Hensley) started first-up from sixth with early trailer Style For A Mile (Doug McNair) following suit.
Grit N Grace reemerged from the pocket in pursuit of In The Spotlight N turning for home with Glenboro shooting through inside and Caviar N Crackers and Style For A Mile rallying outside down the stretch while Chantilly searched for racing room between rivals. It was a sprint to the finish with In The Spotlight N holding on for the 1:50.1 victory by a head over her fast-closing Dave Menary stablemate Style For A Mile. Caviar N Crackers finished right there in third, with Glenboro fourth. Chantilly squeezed through for fifth but caused interference to sixth-place finisher Grit N Grace while doing so prompting the racing officials to reverse the pair's order of finish.
Stepping up to the Preferred level off a 1:49.2 career-best victory last week at Mohawk, In The Spotlight N improved to three-for-five this summer since arriving in Canada and joining the Menary stable for Pennsylvania's Pollack Racing, also owner of the runner-up Style For A Mile. The seven-year-old Bettors Delight-Goodlookingbabe mare now has six wins overall this year in 16 starts and 24 career victories with earnings topping the $350,000 mark.
Mohawk also hosted the third leg of the Ontario Sires Stakes Grassroots Series for two-year-old male trotters on Friday with the Nick Gallucci-trained Hot Country winning the fastest of three $25,000 divisions for owner Millar Farms of Stouffville, Ont. James MacDonald guided the Muscle Mass-Feel Invincible As gelding through fractions of :27.1, :57.1 and 1:26.4 en route to the 1:55.3 triumph, holding off the advancing Anibal Duharas (Bob McClure) by half a length with Mass Deployment (Tyler Borth) closing for third. Hot Country, a $110,000 yearling purchase from the 2024 London Classic Sale, broke his maiden in his fourth career start following a runner-up finish in the last Grassroots leg at Grand River Raceway.
Trouble With Names (Muscle Mass-Usainy B) won at first asking in 1:56 with Bob McClure moving him to the lead down the backstretch and turning back first-over challenger Yacht Club (Doug McNair) en route to the 2-3/4-length victory for trainer Paul Reid, who co-owns with Patrick Dillon and Patti Hoskin of Port Hope, Ont. Raucous (Travis Cullen), the favourite fresh off a Grassroots victory at Grand River, rallied three-wide as his cover faded turning for home and bested the pocket-popping Beau Knight (James MacDonald) in the race for place.
The other division went to Great Trickster (Trixton-Great Dane), who took control down the backstretch for trainer/driver Bruce Richardson and won in 1:58.1 by two lengths over late-surging Stormont Fast Boy (Bob McClure) and the favoured early leader, Toss Of The Dice (Tyler Borth). Richardson shares ownership of the first-time winner with Joseph Coffey of Orangeville, Ont.
To view Friday's harness racing results, click the following link: Friday Results - Woodbine Mohawk Park.
(Standardbred Canada)