by Karen Briggs, WEG media

Campbellville, ON — A total of 34 fabulous fillies go postward tonight (July 20) at Mohawk in four elimination flights for the Canadian Breeders Championships.

With races two and six carded for 3-year-old filly pacers, and races five and seven designated for their trotting counterparts, the fields for the finals on Saturday, July 28, at Mohawk will be made up of the top five finishers from each elimination.

In the first of the two elims for pacers, dominant force Milliondollarsmile, listed as the 3-5 favorite, will be the one to watch, but the Camluck-sired duo of Jans Luck in race two, and Luck of Michelle in race six (both trained by John Pentland) have also been tearing up the OSS Gold series standings of late and are worthy of notice.

On the trotting side, however, there will be warm sentiment for a filly named Caught My Eye, conditioned by Frank O’Reilly and scheduled to be driven by veteran Bill O’Donnell. The daughter of Angus Hall is owned by O’Reilly, John Fielding of Toronto, and former NHL hockey great John Ferguson, Sr., who recently lost a two-year battle with bone cancer.

Ferguson was widely hailed as a devoted friend of harness racing, but Caught My Eye is not only deserving of attention on sentimental grounds, she’s the real deal, currently ranked the top 3-year-old trotting filly on the Ontario Sires Stakes circuit, with 124 points and C$104,626 in OSS earnings (C$373,796 lifetime).

“We drew a tough spot,” says O’Reilly. “We got the 10 hole, but that filly always gets her share. She’s got lots of juice in her. We’re liking this cooler weather, and she’s ready to do battle.”

Caught My Eye’s interests are keenly aware of the absence of Ferguson this evening.

“We feel robbed that Fergie’s gone, but we can’t change what we can’t change,” says O’Reilly. “At least Fergie got to have her. He listened to her race on Friday (July 13’s OSS Gold Final, where Caught My Eye finished third) and died on Saturday. He was never a guy who had to win every week, he was just happy she’d come in third.”

As for this evening’s challenge, O’Reilly says, “She fits in there and she’s proven that.” And he adds a little personal ribbing for driver Bill O’Donnell: “She makes him look good — and that’s not easy to do!”

Post time at Mohawk is 7:20 p.m. Catch the Canadian Breeders’ Championships eliminations for 3-year-old fillies at 7:40, 8:40, 9:00, and 9:20 p.m.