Shaws Creek Spirit used different racing tactics tonight to take home the lion's share of the $17,200 purse in the Young Guns Final at Sudbury Downs.
Wayne MacLean took the three-year-old gelding to the front from Post 4 and never looked back. Shaws Creek Spirit led the field unchallenged through fractions of :27.3, :57.2 and 1:27.3. The son of Apaches Fame nabbed the win in 1:57.3 while the overlooked 16-1 shot, Chasing Connor (Michael Noble) closed well finishing a quarter length behind. Acton Kuddly (Paul MacLean) stayed for third.
The Dion MacLean trainee won from off the pace in the first leg of the series on August 16 and put forth a pair of runner-up performances in the following legs. Unraced at two, Shaws Creek Spirit has earned $33,072 in 14 starts this year with six wins, four seconds and three thirds. He is owned by the Shaws Creek Stable of Orangeville, Ont.
In other action, Armbro Edward triumphed in the $9,000 Preferred Trot for the third week in a row in wire-to-wire fashion for trainer/driver Justin Turcotte.
The four-year-old gelding out of Balanced Image appears to be getting stronger by the week, posting faster times and bigger margins of victory.
This week, Armbro Edward posted fractions of :28.4, :58.4, 1:29.3 en route to his 1:58.1 score by four lengths. Donald Rankin (Paul MacLean) finished second and Terra Cotta Caddy (Allan Hohner) was third.
The bay has banked $80,930 and won 11 races for owner Norbert Haesen of Berlin, Germany.
To view Saturday's results, click here.