The Quebec Jockey Club will see its new series, the Quebec Plus Series, get underway this Sunday (Sept. 16) at Hippodrome 3R with two divisions for two-year-old pacers, one for colts and one for fillies.
The series is for two, three, four and five-year-old horses that were eligible for the Quebec Series this summer, but did not make more than $7,500 this season as of September 10.
There will be two preliminary rounds for $4,000 and then a $10,000 final on October 7. Fillies will race against colts. Due to lack of entries there will no series for the two-year-old trotters.
The series gets started in the sixth race first division and is headed by trainer Maxime Velaye’s Dernier Essai, which translates to English as Last Test. This son of Mach Three starts from post four for driver Pierre Luc Roy.
“He has been dropping seconds since his first qualifier,” Maxime Velaye explained. “I think the reason he has yet to win a race is because he was beat by better horses.”
In the $55,000 Future Stars Final last week, Dernier Essai finished fifth and was race timed in 1:57.3, his fastest clocking yet.
“It is a great idea to have this Quebec Plus Series,” Velaye said. “To give these young horses, and I talking for myself as my horse is very, very green, and this series will help him a lot. I think he is the one to beat (and is still very green) but he is learning from every start he made so far.”
And where did this name, Dernier Essai, come from?
“His name came from the movie The Longest Yard with Adam Sandler,” Velaye explained. “In French the movie title was 'Dernier Essai' and his owner, Guy Corbeil of Mirabel, just loved that movie.”
Other horses to watch in the first division include Angelo Benjo (post five) with driver Jonathan Lachance and Moneymakehersmile (post two) for driver Stephane Brosseau.
The second division is the eighth race and the morning line favourite is the filly Behavenmyself, who starts from post two for owners Jean-Roch Marois and the GLD Stables.
This daughter of Badlands Hanover has never raced at 3R, and her career so far in Ontario has been competing in the OSS Grassroots for trainer Gerald Demers. While she has no wins in seven starts she has been race-timed faster than 2:00, the quickest in 1:55.3. She will be driven by Pascal Berube.
Likely contenders in the race include Esprit Dequipe (post one) for driver Pierre Luc Roy, Lovelouguys (post seven) with driver Jocelyn Gendron and D Gs Fairystars (post nine) for driver Jonathan Lachance.
The Open Handicap Trot in the seventh race will be perhaps one of the best races of the day. Capteur De Reve (post eight) is the favourite because he won this class his last two starts for trainer Maxime Velaye and shows that he can win from on or off the pace.
The competition will be fierce with Rocky Boy (post seven) back in gear, Broadway Maija (post six) was second last week and the return of Fortunes Friend (post four) who returns from Rideau Carleton off a 1:59 victory.
Also, of note, Precieuse CC, fresh off her triumph in the $65,000 Breeders Cup last week, faces the best trotters for driver/trainer Claude Beausoleil. Precieuse CC was given the rail as she is the only three-year-old in the field. She is going for her third straight win.
Post time Sunday is 12:50 pm. For a free race program, visit quebecjockeyclub.com. To view the entries for Sunday's card, click the following link: Sunday Entries - Hippodrome 3R.
(With files from the Quebec Jockey Club)