A quartet of Elevage Quebecois finals were featured Tuesday for freshman trotters and pacers at Hippodrome Trois Rivieres, and Team Filion stole the show by winning two of the $15,000 affairs.
They got the ball rolling prior to the program with Uliane Bayama, who bested just a pair of foes in the trotting filly final which was contested as a non wagering event prior to the card. Yves Filion took charge right from the outset with the Justin Filion-trained daughter of Striking Sahbra-Keliane Bayama, and after slicing out splits of :31.2, 1:03.3 and 1:35.3 she cruised home in :31.1 to win by 1-1/4 lengths over Tracy Drummond in 2:06.4. Soyouthinkucantrot was a distant third after making multiple miscues in the mile.
Bayama Farms Inc of Saint-Andre-D’Argenteuil, QC bred and own the career winner of $30,460. She’s managed to assemble a 2-2-2 record from her first eight trips postward. She won’t get much time to rest on her laurels, however, as Team Filion will now focus on the OSS Grassroots Semi-Finals at Grand River Raceway on September 21.
The father and son duo of driver Yves Filion and trainer Justin Filion also captured the $15,000 final in the two-year-old trotting colt and gelding category with Offson, who went wire-to-wire in a time of 2:07.3 over a track rated as “good” with a three-second allowance. Sent off as the 1-9 favourite, the son of Majestic Son-Offspring Dream led the field through fractions of :31.2, 1:03.3 and 1:36.1 before drawing clear to win by 3-1/4 lengths over Ken P V in 2:07.3. Spartaco grabbed the show dough.
After failing to hit the board in his first four pari-mutuel assignments, Offson has answered with back-to-back wins for owner/breeder Jacques Damours of Laval, QC. The colt’s lifetime earnings jumped to $11,920 with the win.
The betting public was enamoured with Eloge in the two-year-old pacing filly final, and the daughter of No Pan Intended-Missthrill didn’t disappoint her backers thanks to her decisive score in 2:03.2 for the driver Simon Allard. Parked past the quarter in :29.4 while sitting third on the rim, Eloge eventually worked her way to the top and supplied middle intervals of 1:01.3 and 1:32.2 before scooting home in a :31-second clip to seal the deal. Shanghai Gadgette was second, with third prize earned by Shanghai Mimi.
Bred, owned and trained by Guy Corbeil of Mirabel, QC, Eloge bettered her lifetime record to 3-1-1 from six attempts while pushing her earnings to $15,307.
Machtothemoon started his career 0-for-4, but since then he’s rattled off four consecutive wins thanks in part to Tuesday’s win in the pacing colt and gelding division. Denis St. Pierre treated the son of Mach Three-Flyingtomoon Rayno to a second over trip, and the gelding turned it into a neck victory over The Real One in 2:02.1. Snipper Phil held on to finish third after doing the first over work.
Sent off as the 3-5 favourite, the Colin Johnson trainee now boasts a 4-0-2 record from eight assignments. His bankroll now stands at $17,600 for owner/breeder Sotirios Anastasopoulos of Sainte-Therese, QC.
To view results for Tuesday's card of harness racing, click the following link: Tuesday Results – Hippodrome Trois Rivieres.