INNISFIL, ON — Advancing out of last weekend’s Gold Elimination was the first test for Babyremembermyname. Now trainer Paul Mackenzie would like to see the three-year-old pacing filly earn a sizeable chunk of the $130,000 Gold Final purse this Saturday night at Georgian Downs.
“I was looking forward to racing her and she’s come back pretty good so far. That (elimination) was only her first start, so hopefully she can race as well this week,” says Mackenzie, who trains and drives the filly for Aurora resident Edward James. “She could be in the hunt. She should be a little sharper this week.”
One thing that might work against the Apaches Fame daughter in Saturday night’s lucrative Final is her post position. Babyremembermyname will start from Post 6, with a number of high speed fillies lining up to her left.
“A lot of the best ones drew inside,” notes Mackenzie. “She’s got gate speed if you have to use it, but it is only her second start back and I don’t want to torture her too much. It would be nice to get a good chunk without putting too much of a kink in her.
“I’d like to have another start or two into her to have her really tight, but we’ll just have to try and work out a trip for her.”
Babyremembermyname’s sophomore season got off to a late start after she battled health problems earlier in the spring. She made her first appearance on the racetrack with a win in a June 15 qualifier at Flamboro Downs and followed that up with another victory in qualifying action on June 22, touring the half-mile oval in 1:56.2. The sophomore fillies make their fourth Gold Series stop at Flamboro Downs and Mackenzie hopes Babyremembermyname will be at the top of her game for the Aug. 7 event.
“She’s versatile. She doesn’t need a track to take with her,” says the veteran horseman. “I qualified her twice at Flamboro, the first time kind of easy and the second time I revved her up a little and she qualified good there. She got around the turns pretty good.
“Hopefully I’ll have another start or two into her by then (Aug. 7) and she’ll be ready to rock.”
For now however, the Puslinch resident has his sights set on Saturday’s Gold Final and the fillies Babyremembermyname will face in the seventh race. Elimination winners Lucks Mistress and Tattootina will line up side-by-side at Posts 4 and 5, last season’s top money earner Lady Dillinger gets Post 1 and two-time Gold Final winner Lady D M will start from the outside Post 9 for the second straight week.
Georgian Downs raises the curtain on its Saturday evening performance at 7:35 pm and turns the spotlight on the province’s top three-year-old pacing fillies in Race 7.
For a complete list of entries please go to:
http://www.standardbredcanada.ca/entries/data/egeodfsa.html