from the Ontario Sires Stakes

Campbellville, ON — Freshman pacers were in the spotlight at Mohawk Racetrack on Thursday evening (Aug. 11) as the Campbellville oval hosted two Ontario Sires Stakes Gold divisions for the colts. Sports Column and Streakavana picked up their second Ontario Sires Stakes trophies and moved to the top of the division standings.

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Sports Column scored his third straight victory, and second in Gold Series action, with a 1:53.3 effort at Mohawk Racetrack on Thursday.

Sports Column led off with a commanding four length victory in the first $80,850 split. The Sportswriter-Lady Leslie son and driver Chris Christoforou took control of the race heading by the three-quarter pole and pulled away from the field in spite of a steering issue that saw the colt leaning heavily on the inside line. Yogi Bayama and Manceiver finished four lengths behind the fan favorite in second and third, respectively.

“There’s something small bothering him that we’ve got to get fixed up,” noted trainer Blake MacIntosh. “We’ve got a month to the Champlain, so he’ll have an easy week this week and he’ll go up to Dr. Ruch’s Monday or Tuesday next week, and hopefully he can figure him out.”

MacIntosh selected Sports Column out of the 2015 Lexington Selected Yearling Sale, offering up $20,000, and he opted not to pay the colt into the Metro Pace or the Nassagaweya Stake. The colt’s next start will come in the Sept. 10 Champlain Stakes at Mohawk and then he will finish up the Ontario Sires Stakes season with Gold legs at Grand River Raceway on Sept. 19 and Mohawk on Oct. 1, and the season ending Super Final at Mohawk on Oct. 15.

“In one way I’m happy that we didn’t pay him into the Metro, because now I’ve got a month to try and get him right and have him right for the Super Final and the Champlain and his last two Golds,” said MacIntosh. “Have him ready for that, then put him away, and hopefully we’ve got a nice 3-year-old for next year.”

The Cambridge resident conditions Sports Column for his partners Hutt Racing Stable and Daniel Plouffe. Through six starts the colt has four wins, including two in Gold Series action and his elimination and the final of the Battle of Waterloo, and two seconds for earnings of $171,356.

In the second division driver Sylvain Filion fired fan favorite Streakavana away from post nine and settled the Big Jim-Stonebridge Madona son on the rail in fourth as Calvin K rolled out to a :27.3 opening quarter. Opting not to sit and watch Calvin K do all the work, Filion sent Streakavana to the front before the :56.1 half and the gelding led the field to a 1:25.2 three-quarters and then sailed down the stretch to a 1:53.1 victory. Calvin K finished one length back in second, just ahead of Machin A Trick.

Filion crafted the win, Streakavana’s third straight, for trainer Scott McEneny and owners Brad Grant and Teresa Davidson. In four starts the pacer has posted three wins and one second for earnings of $90,395. With two Gold Series wins he sits second in the division standings with 100 points, while Sports Column holds down the top spot with 125 points.