FRASERVILLE, ON — Angus Hall sons, led by elimination winner Laddie, swept the top three positions in the sophomore trotting colt Gold Final at Kawartha Downs on Tuesday evening.

In what has become their stock in trade, Laddie and driver Paul MacDonell delivered an impressive come from behind effort to claim the one length victory, stopping the clock in a personal best 1:55, just one-fifth of a second off the track record set in the elimination round by San Pail.

Starting from Post 2 MacDonell eased Laddie into fourth spot on the rail as Celtic Warrior took the field to a :27.4 opening quarter before handing the front end off to Claudius Augustus. Elimination winner Claudius Augustus and driver Mario Baillargeon coasted to a :57 half, but well before the 1:25 three-quarters the pair were under heavy pressure.

Unafraid of the long route up the outside, MacDonell sent Laddie after the leaders and the colt had cut Claudius Augustus’s lead to a quarter length before they turned for home. Down the stretch Laddie finished the job, pulling away to his second straight victory, with Claudius Augustus hanging on for second and Celtic Warrior third.

Paula Wellwood trains Laddie for her partners in the Wellwood Stables Inc. of Cambridge. Tuesday’s victory put the colt’s sophomore record at two wins and two fourths in four starts this season and bumped his lifetime earnings over the $520,000 mark.

At two Laddie was a dominant force in the latter part of the Ontario Sires Stakes campaign, putting together a five race unbeaten streak that included a Champlain Stakes division, his elimination and the final of the William Wellwood Memorial (which honours Wellwood’s father), a Gold Elimination and Gold Final. The streak was interrupted by an unfortunate break in the Super Final, resumed with a victory in the elimination round of the prestigious Breeders Crown, and then halted with another break in the Breeders Crown Final.

Through his freshman campaign and his early efforts this season, MacDonell has employed an off the pace style with Laddie that never fails to bring fans to their feet, and Tuesday’s race was no different as the fan favourites spent more than half the mile sitting off the right flank of the leaders.

Flamboro Downs fans will be the next group to be treated to Laddie’s gritty style, as the three-year-old trotting colts make their third Gold Series start at the Dundas half-mile on August 10.

Ontario Sires Stakes excitement returns to Kawartha Downs on Thursday, July 19 with the Grassroots debut of the two-year-old pacing colts.

For complete results please go to:

http://www.standardbredcanada.ca/results/data/rkdftu.html#N5