Mister Big and Won The West waged war during the back half of the $50,300 Winbak Pace for aged horses this afternoon at the Delaware County Fair in Ohio
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With a compact field of four pacers putting their noses to the gate for the classic event, Mister Big and driver Brian Sears fired out from the three hole and secured the rail prior to the opening stanza flashing to life in :27.2.
Won The West and driver David Miller bided their time in the second quarter of race, lurking in third place.
After Mister Big clicked off the opening half in :55.4, Miller sent Won The West first up. The five-year-old Western Hanover gelding was up for the overland trek, as the student of trainer Ron Burke made up lengths in the third panel.
Sears and Mister Big were starting to feel the pressure by the time they spun off three quarters in 1:24.1, as Won The West and Miller were hot on their heels.
The Virgil Morgan, Jr.-trained Mister Big showed a lot of grit through the lane. With Won The West full of pace in the stretch, Mister Big dug in and raced tough, but just got beat in the final strides.
Won The West stopped the final timer in 1:50.4.
Atochia (driven by Dave Palone) finished third and Booze Cruizin (Sam Widger) fourth.
Courtesy of his impressive effort, Won The West recorded his fourth victory of the season and 24th overall.
Mister Big surpassed a personal milestone with the second-place finish, as the Ontario-sired son of Grinfromeartoear became the first Canadian-bred standardbred to reach the $4 million mark in career purse earnings.