by Greg Gangle, WEG Communications

Campbellville, ON — The C$30,000 second round of the Beat The Heat Pacing Series took place on Saturday evening (June 30) at Mohawk.

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The Ladies Man was a 1:51 winner on Saturday.

After finding the winner’s circle in the C$20,000 opening leg, The Ladies Man continued his best stride as he capitalized off a perfect pocket trip by driver Aaron Byron to score the win in 1:51.

All Tiger N (Luc Ouellette) left aggressively from post nine to lead his ten rivals past panels of :26, :55 and 1:23 before The Ladies Man overtook command and held off all challengers. Trend Spotter (Jason Brewer) came from off the pace to finish second with Lucky Terror (Jody Jamieson) finishing third.

“He’s an easy horse to drive with a terrific attitude and is a classy horse,” Byron said following the race. “We were fortunate to get the two-hole trip behind a good horse (All Tiger N), who I knew would take me to the top of the stretch. Hopefully we get a good post for the final.”

Jim Ritchie trains and co-owns the 20-time winner with his brother, Paul, and Murray Cox. The Ladies Man has now notched three straight victories in nine starts this season as his lifetime earnings increased to C$273,975.

After finishing second by a nose in the opening round, Bestinthebusiness found his best stride as he went gate-to-wire in the first division for driver Luc Ouellette.

Despite a post 10 start, Ouellette urged Bestinthebusiness to the front well before the opening panel in :26.4. Post time favorite Keep It Real (Jody Jamieson) was second with Sheer Desire (Keith Oliver) third.

Bestinthebusiness continued past the half in :54.2 and three-quarters in 1:23, before fending off Keep It Real in deep stretch to score the win in 1:50.4. Keep It Real stayed for second, over Sheer Desire (Keith Oliver).

“He’s got terrific gate speed, which we used tonight,” Ouellette said. “I knew Keep It Real was on my back, but at the top of the stretch, I was feeling pretty good about my horse. He felt strong and paced right through the wire. It makes for a great final.”

Owned by Brett Boyd Racing Inc., Bestinthebusiness notched his 17th career win for trainer Stephen Davis. The 4-year-old son of Another Mile increased his bankroll to C$136,194. The gelding boasts a 4-5-1 record from 15 starts this season. He paid $11.70 to win as the second choice.

The series is for older pacers that were non-winners of C$25,000 in 2012 as of May 31 (winners over C$100,000 in 2011 were not eligible).

The C$50,000 final will go to post on Saturday (July 7).