by Jeff Renton, media/communications, the Woodbine Entertainment Group
Campbellville, ON — Wrapping up the Mohawk spring meet in grand fashion, a quartet of C$100,000 Burlington Stakes divisions had the top notch three-year-old pacing colts and geldings out in full force in Campbellville on Saturday night.
Georgia Pacific, Metropolitan, Village Hero N and Panspacificflight all laid down the law in their divisions, all doing so from varied trips.
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Georgia Pacific set a new stakes record in winning his Burlington division.
Pacing the first sub-1:50 mile of the year on Canadian soil, Georgia Pacific ($20.20) and driver Brian Sears put in a new stakes record mile while taking the evening’s second division in a sizzling 1:494.
The mile was just one-fifth of a second off of the Mohawk track record for three-year-old pacers, which was set by Red River Hanover in 2002, who subsequently went on to win the Pepsi North America Cup.
Previous to his victorious trip in the Burlington, the fastest that Georgia Pacific, a gelded son of Western Hanover, had ever gone was a 1:51 mile during a preliminary leg of the Berry’s Creek at the Meadowlands. But, on this night, the pupil of Randall Bendis took it to another level, displaying a pair of early moves before bearing down in a :27 second final panel.
“Every time I called on him he gave me a little bit more and I was really impressed with him,” said Sears from trackside after the explosive performance. “We hadn’t had a chance to really put him into a race early. Opportunity knocked tonight and he responded well.”
Parked third with cover as Marchand and driver Ron Pierce sliced a :262 opening quarter-mile, Sears and Georgia Pacific had a brief stint on the cones before clearing to the front. They carved the half-mile in :544, passed the three-quarter pole in 1:224, and fended off all comers in the lane to score by a half length. Mantacular and driver Cat Manzi finished second, while Dr No, in rein to Doug Brown, finished two lengths back in third.
Afterwards, Bendis was asked if he thought Georgia Pacific would be one of the major players heading into the North America Cup, which gets underway with C$35,000 elimination divisions next Saturday, June 12 at Woodbine.
“I think I am; I’ve thought all along that I was,” said Bendis, who also co-owns Georgia Pacific with fellow Pennsylvania residents Susan Catelli, John Campbell and Maine’s William Varney. “I think this is a great bunch of evenly-matched colts this year and I think anybody can beat anybody on any given night. But, I’ve thought all along that he was a ’50 pacer’ and he proved it tonight.”
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Village Hero N was alone at the wire in his Burlington split.
A move in the second quarter of the evening’s opening division also yielded a victory, this time for Village Hero N ($22.70) and driver Richard Silverman, who put in a 1:512 mile.
Getting away third as O Narutac Magic and driver Chris Christoforou reached the opening quarter-mile in :274, Silverman sent the gelded son of Village Jasper to the point after Duca and driver Jack Moiseyev briefly held the lead after attacking from the two hole. On top for good, Village Hero N lit the lamps in the half-mile board in an even :56 seconds. En route to his fifth career score, Village Hero N breezed by the third quarter-mile in 1:242 and spurned the rest of the field, as he came home with a :27 second final panel.
Village Hero N was one of 29 North America Cup eligibles (out of the 66 overall) who were in action during the Burlington divisions.
Conditioned by Jerry Silverman for Connecticut-based owner Annette Hunter, Village Hero N finished one and three-quarter lengths ahead of Rapid Dialing and driver Steve Condren, while Duca and Moiseyev hung on for third and finished three lengths back.
After taking in four wildly entertaining dashes of The Classic Series, it was back to the three-year-old action. And many eyes were locked on the highly regarded son of The Panderosa, Metropolitan, in the third split.
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Metropolitan led every step of the mile in his Burlington division.
Making his way to the starting gate as an overwhelming 1-5 favourite, Metropolitan ($2.70) and John Campbell didn’t disappoint, as they went a gate-to-wire mile in 1:511 without even being seriously tested.
The fractions were :271, :563 and 1:241 before Metropolitan came home with a :27 second final panel. Unique Fighter and Chris Christoforou finished two and a half lengths back in second, while Tricky Grin and Jack Moiseyev were two and three-quarter lengths behind for third.
“I’m happy he bounced back with a race like he did tonight,” Campbell said of Metropolitan, who made a break due to nterference in his last tilt, the Hoosier Cup in Indiana. “He was very sharp leaving the gate and very sharp finishing, so I think that he is going into the North America Cup right at the top of his game. We are just going to have to see how he fits with all of the top colts when they get together.”
Chris Ryder does the conditioning of the colt for an ownership group which consists of Florida’s Norman Smiley, Georgia’s Jeffrey Langfelder, New Jersey’s TLP Stable and Quebec’s Gerald Smiley.
When asked if Metropolitan was similar to his sire (who won the North America Cup in 1999), Campbell noted that he is in some ways, but in others he is not.
“Just the speed part and the gait part; he is very good-gaited. (Besides that) He is actually nothing like his father. His father was more racey and ‘onward-going.’ This colt is very laid back, you have to make him do it, so he is very different from The Panderosa in that regard.”
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Panspacificflight gets up at the wire to win the final Burlington division.
Another son of The Panderosa took the fourth and final division, but wasn’t able to work out a trip quite like Metropolitan did.
Even after being dealt the ten hole, Kevin McMaster-trainee Panspacificflight ($3.90) still emerged victorious at the wire in a remarkable 1:503 touring.
In rein to Luc Ouellette and never acquiring the cozy confines of the rail, the Peter Pan Stables-owned colt toughed it out through a very impressive mile and scored by one and a quarter lengths over Sparkler and driver Randy Waples. Reason To Smile and Steve Condren finished two and three-quarter lengths back in third.
The calls were reached in :27, :552 and 1:231 respectively, before Panspacificflight had enough left to nudge the wire first in a :272 final panel.
“I knew I was going to be parked the whole way by the three-eighths pole and I wasn’t concerned” Ouellette said afterward.
With the effort, Panspacificflight lowered his speed badge for the second consecutive week after opening some eyes with a 1:511 mile during an overnight on May 25 at Mohawk.
Woodbine’s summer meet starts Monday
This coming Monday, June 7, racing will return to Woodbine Racetrack for the 65-day summer meet. The session will run through until September 4 and will showcase an abundance of stakes action.
The opening weekend over the Toronto oval is in high anticipation, as the continent’s top three-year-old pacing colts and geldings will be duking it out on June 12 during the C$35,000 eliminations of the Pepsi North America Cup.
Along with the C$1.5 million North America Cup, the C$300,000 Goodtimes, C$607,300 Elegantimage, C$242,200 Robert Stewart, C$767,800 She’s A Great Lady, C$347,500 Roses Are Red and the C$727,700 Fan Hanover Stakes will all be contested over the seven-eighths of a mile course.
The C$458,858 Canadian Breeders’ Championships, C$1,122,700 Metro Pace, C$824,000 Canadian Pacing Derby and the C$340,000 Armbro Flight Invitational are all set to go throughout the summer as well.
Series which will be conducted are the annual C$57,400 Summertime, C$54,600 Town Pro, C$58,800 Dream Maker and the C$52,000 Whenuwishuponastar Series.
The Ontario Sires Stakes program will also be on display on 18 of the meet’s cards, nine of which will host C$130,000 Gold Finals.
The two most lucrative days of the meet will be June 19 and September 4.
June 19 is set to be a dynamite evening at the track, with the Pepsi North America Cup, Armbro Flight Invitational, Elegantimage and Goodtimes Stakes alone combining to offer over C$2.7 million in purses.
On September 4, the last day of the meet, the Metro Pace, Canadian Pacing Derby, She’s A Great Lady and Roses Are Red Stakes alone will combine to offer over C$3 million in purses.