REXDALE, ON — Paul MacDonell and Invitro tried something new at Woodbine Racetrack on Saturday evening, but the change in tactics led to the same old result as the three-year-old pacing filly cruised to her seventh straight victory.
“I was a little bit curious to she how she could get off of the gate,” said MacDonell after the race. “She’s just been taking it easy pretty much for the first six or eight starts this year off the gate. I thought I’d just let her ramble a little bit. I didn’t really leave with her that hard, but I just let her pace and she had the front easy.”
MacDonell and Invitro left from Post 7 and rambled their way through fractions of :26.3, :56 and 1:24.4 before easing away from the field to a three length victory in 1:51.1. Serious Comfort, owned by Millar Farms of Newmarket, closed well to earn the second-place finisher’s share of the $130,000 purse while Illusionist, owned by Scott Enman of Pickering, Larry Cometto of Oshawa and John Dragojevic of Nobleton, held on for third.
The win was Invitro’s third straight Gold Final victory, giving owner-breeders Gordon Irwin of Cobourg and Murray Ross of Norwood a trophy each, plus a spare to share with their families. Irwin also trains the winner of $607,696 and said before the race that a party to celebrate Invitro’s accomplishments over the last two seasons is slated for the night of the Fan Hanover eliminations at Woodbine on Aug. 21.
“After this is the Fan Hanover and it’s the biggest race I’ve ever been in and the biggest race she may ever be in,” said the veteran horseman. “So we’ve set up a party for all our friends and family the night of the eliminations. We’ve booked the Post Parade room and there will be 90 people there. We called all these people and there were only two or three who couldn’t come, and these are people who know absolutely nothing about racing. So we’re having the party even if she (Invitro) is not there.”
Irwin and Ross will be crossing their fingers over the next seven days that Invitro remains healthy and happy and can attend the party in her honour. And MacDonell is looking forward to seeing how the Camluck daughter makes out against her American-bred peers.
“I’m not sure she can dominate like she did tonight, but I think that she can pace right with them,” said MacDonell.
Following the Fan Hanover Eliminations and Final (Aug. 28), the three-year-old pacing fillies do not return to Gold Series action until Oct. 3 at Windsor Raceway, their last prep before the Nov. 13 Super Final at Woodbine.