DUNDAS, ON — Flamboro Downs hosted an action-packed card of provincial stakes action on Saturday, which saw Bailey Bug earn a surprise Gold Final victory and Please Me Please score the fastest win of three Trillium Series divisions.
After establishing a new track and OSS record of 1:53.3 in Gold Elimination action at Flamboro last weekend, Precious Delight looked poised to snatch top prize in Saturday’s $130,000 showdown. However, an uncharacteristic break as she left the wings from Post Position 1 saw the pre-race favourite slide to the back of the eight horse field and finish the final regular season Gold Final event in last place.
Eager to capitalize on Precious Delight’s misfortune, the rest of the field battled their way around the oval at Flamboro and when the dust finally settled it was long-shot Bailey Bug first under the wire.
Trained by Milton resident Ben Wallace and with Mario Baillargeon at the reins, the plucky pacer flirted with third, fourth and fifth spots before making a strong stretch drive to blast her way from third place to victory in a time of 1:55.
Bailey Bug’s surprise trip to the winner’s circle at Flamboro Downs garnered $65,000 for her owners Jeffrey Langfelder of Atlanta, GA, Steve Heidelberger of Baldwin, NY and Edward Leiva of Little Neck, NY.
For race fans who put a toonie on her chances, the sophomore filly returned $34.30 for the win, $10.70 to place and $8.50 to show.
Hot on Bailey Bug’s heels in today’s Gold Final, but forced to play runners-up were a pair of local lasses, Nicki Newton and Go Alberta Go.
Owned by Don Culham of Cambridge and John Clark of Toronto, Nicki Newton overcame Post 8 with a burst of speed and charged to the head of the field. Still leading as they headed for home the three-year-old filly could not hold off the determined Bailey Bug and had to settle for second-place.
Go Alberta Go, owned by Glengate Farms of Campbellville, Clay Harland Horner and Suvretta Stables of Toronto, paced to third-place with a solid Gold Final performance.
Together Bailey Bug, Nicki Newton and Go Alberta Go combined for the biggest payout of the day, returning a Triactor of $3054.20.
The outcome was a much more predictable one when the rookie filly pacers took to the Flamboro track for their Trillium divisions in Races 1, 5, and 8.
Please Me Please, owned by Bob McIntosh of Windsor, Al McIntosh of Leamington and Dwight Stacey of Mitchell, posted the fasted win of the three Trillium events in a wire-to-wire effort in 1:56.3.
The Camluck sired youngster, piloted by Chris Christoforou in the Saturday afternoon sunshine, returned $2.30, $2.10 and $2.10 for her effort.
Taking second behind Please Me Please was local entry Town Jiffy, owned by Linda Magid of Cambridge. Burning Point rounded out the top three spots in the provincial skirmish.
The other successful local freshman was Future Champion. Owned by Donald Lowes of Paris, the two-year-old finished second behind a strong moving Brokenstar and ahead of a hard working Armbro Arrow in Race 1 on the afternoon card. The winning time posted by Brokenstar in Race 1 was 2:00.4.
After an exciting Saturday at Flamboro Downs the two-year-old Ontario-bred fillies head for Mohawk Racetrack on Oct. 28 for Gold Series action and Kawartha Downs on Oct. 18 for their last regular season Grassroots event. The three-year-old pacing fillies will take a well deserved rest before gearing up for what is sure to be a thrilling end to the 2002 Ontario Sires Stakes season at Mohawk Racetrack in the Nov. 16 Super Final Championship.