by Karsten Bønsdorf, USTA Senior Internet Correspondent
The 10-year old European top trotter Timoko, driven by Björn Goop, won the Grand Criterium de Vitesse for the fourth time Sunday afternoon (March 12) at Cagnes sur Mer in Southern France.
Gerard Forni photo
In the process of collecting his fourth victory in the Grand Criterium, Timoko (1:51.4) breaks Varenne’s 15-year-old record (1:52).
Timoko was in command after the first quarter-mile and was able to show off Un Mec d’Heripre, driven by Jena Michel Bazire, to win in a new race record of 1:51.4; the old record was held by Varenne (1:52). It was established in 2002.
Trained by Dutch-born Richard Westerink, Timoko won the race for the fourth time and third in a row. In fact, he is unbeaten in six starts at Cagnes sur Mer.
The purse for the winner was $96,000.