by Greg Gangle, WEG Communications

Toronto, ON — After finishing third in both preliminary rounds, Brett Miller guided Westwardho Hanover to victory in the C$100,000 Willowdale Pacing Series final in 1:50, equaling the series record, on Saturday (Jan. 21) at Woodbine.

New Image Media photo

The connections celebrate in the winner’s circle following Westwardho Hanover’s score in the Willowdale.

Sent off as the 4-5 favorite, Miller rushed Westwardho Hanover to the lead at the quarter in :26.3. Camaes Fellow (Doug McNair) sat in the pocket with Reckless Ric (Randy Waples) third.

No challengers engaged Westwardho Hanover as he marched past the half in :55 and three-quarters in 1:22.2. Mystician (Jody Jamieson), who captured both preliminary legs, was within striking distance, second-over turning for home.

Down the stretch, Westwardho Hanover opened up on his rivals until late in the mile as Mystician exploded in deep stretch before running out of real estate as Westwardho Hanover scored the win by a neck. Camaes Fellow finished third.

“To be honest, I didn’t really have a game plan coming into tonight,” Miller said following the win. “I kind of let the horse decide what he wanted to do and he wanted to leave the gate. When we didn’t face any pressure in the middle half, I thought our chances were really good. At the end of the mile, Mystician almost got us. He went a great mile, also.”

Trained by Ron Burke and owned by Westward Ho Stable, Westwardho Hanover increased his bankroll to C$647,320. The son of Dragon Again now has 11 career victories and boasts a record of 1-0-2 in three starts in 2012.