New Brunswick native Gilles Barrieau had the hot hands on Saturday at Fredericton Raceway driving the winners of two $8,930 Bill Quigg Memorial Stakes divisions and the $5,000 Jennie & Joe Chippin Memorial Pace featured on the afternoon program of harness racing.
Barrieau scored his first win of the day in the sophomore filly stakes division as Jann Down rallied wide off cover to defeat favourite Miss Oromocto by one length in 1:59.3. The homebred Articulator filly earned her sixth stakes win this year from 14 starts and pushed her seasonal earnings to nearly $50,000 for Downey Stables of Quispamsis, N.B. and trainer Stephen Mason, whose stable went three-for-three on the day. Gigolos Pride finished five and a half lengths back in third.
Barrieau later sent Dixieland Band wire-to-wire in one of the colt divisions for trainer Kevin MacLean and P.E.I. owners Reginald MacPherson, David MacKenzie and Aaron MacKenzie. The popular Ameripan Gigolo gelding romped to a five and a quarter length victory in 1:56.3, with J J Romeo and George finishing second and third, respectively. Dixieland Band improved his 2015 record to nine-for-13 and pushed his seasonal earnings close to $45,000.
In the Chippin Memorial, Barrieau teamed up with MacLean and company's five-year-old pacer Forever Paradise for a 1:56 triumph. The Western Paradise gelding, who now has wins in half of his 20 starts this year, turned back a challenge from Sterling Seelster past the half-mile mark and went on to score by two and a quarter lengths. Machinthesand and Todd Trites came on for second while J Rs Hurricane finished third.
Trites also had a big day with four wins on the program, including a victory in the other colt division of the Quigg Memorial with Earl Watts trainee Camco Titan. The Ameripan Gigolo gelding led from start to finish, posting a four and three-quarter length winning margin over favourite Pictonian Edge and Barrieau. The 1:56.4 victory was the third in 13 starts this year for Camco Titan, who is owned by P.E.I. partners Windemere Farms, Harris Johnston, John Howatt, and Roger Burns.
Among his wins, Trites also drove Magical Alex to a 1:59.3 victory in the $2,500 Albert Goodine Memorial Junior Invitational Pace, fighting back to regain the lead from Hyperion Blue Chip and then holding off Darth Bader by half a length at the wire. The eight-year-old Harrods gelding is trained and owned by Robert MacNeil of Saint John, N.B. Couleur Magnifique came from last to show for Barrieau.
To view Saturday's harness racing results, click on the following link: Saturday Results - Fredericton Raceway.