CAMPBELLVILLE, ON — Campbellville resident Mike Saftic opened Monday’s Grassroots program at Mohawk Racetrack with a pair of victories aboard two talented freshman pacing colts.
In the first $24,000 division Saftic employed come from behind tactics to land Southwind Amazon his second Grassroots trophy. The pair rolled up the outside behind Sweet Colt Of Mine and Billy Davis Jr. and then overtook that duo in the stretch, pacing under the wire in a personal best 1:54.4.
Sweet Colt Of Mine landed the second-place share, three-quarters of a length behind the winner, and fan favourite Starlite Kid settled for third.
Saftic crafted Southwind Amazon’s win for trainer Gregg McNair and owner Jarold Hawks of Jeddo, MI. Through six starts the Camluck colt has posted two Grassroots wins and third-place finishes in the elimination and final of the July Gold Series event at Rideau Carleton Raceway.
In the second Grassroots division, Saftic had Glammit in high gear early, reaching the quarter in :27.2. The pair continued to lead the field through a :56.3 half and 1:26.2 three-quarters, widening their lead to six lengths in the stretch and halting the Mohawk teletimer at 1:55. Get Around Town finished second, two lengths ahead of third-place finisher Jere.
Larry Micallef conditions Glammit for owner and breeder Dawn Lupul of Rockwood. Like Southwind Amazon, Glammit was making his second appearance in the Grassroots winner’s circle, having posted a personal best 1:54.1 at Kawartha Downs on July 21. The Rambaran son also took one shot at the Gold Series colts, earning a third-place result in the June 29 Gold Elimination at Mohawk and finishing seventh in the final one week later.
Oakville resident Scott Zeron and Milton resident Sylvain Filion also drove two colts each to Grassroots victory on Monday.
Zeron picked up his first win in the fifth race with fan favourite Champagne Phil, rolling up the outside from Post 10 to a 1:54.2 triumph, the gelding’s first in five outings. Rude Boy was three and three-quarter lengths back in second and Mikes Last Bet was five lengths to the rear in third.
Tony O’Sullivan trains Champagne Phil for ICR Racing of Pefferlaw. In five starts the Shaghai Phil son now boasts one win, three seconds and one third for earnings of $29,880.
In the eighth race Zeron teamed up with Panongahela for another come from behind effort, sprinting through the final stages to a three-quarter length victory in an impressive 1:53.1. Burning Shore and Just Henry finished side-by-side in second and third.
Peter Pan Stables of Pepper Pike, OH bred and own Panongahela and David Menary trains the son of No Pan Intended. Monday’s victory was the colt’s first in five starts, the first four spent battling in the Gold Series.
Filion picked up the driving baton in the ninth race, urging lightly rated Port Side to a neck victory over Island Jet. The colts stopped the teletimer at 1:54.2, hitting the wire one and one-half lengths ahead of Blissfull Bro.
Port Side was making his first appearance in the winner’s circle for Stephen and Marilyn Gillard of Tavistock, who bred, own and train the son of Your Nemesis and Anitas Smile.
Filion engineered a second upset in the tenth race as he and Urbana Bayama edged fan favourite Windsong Joker into second place by half a length. OK Ferrari was one more length back in third.
The 1:53.4 clocking was the first victory for Urbana Bayama, a son of Jeremes Jet who is trained by Justin Filion for Bayama Farms Inc. of Saint-Andre-D’Argenteuil, QC.
The quickest mile of the nine Grassroots divisions came in the seventh race when trainer-driver Randy Fritz and Brocks Fortune impressed fans by sweeping up the outside from Post 10 to deliver a five and one-quarter length victory in 1:52.3. Panpero Firpo and Tempo Seelster rounded out the top three.
Robert Chapple of Chatham bred and owns Brocks Fortune, who is a son of Stonebridge Regal and $175,389 winner Fannies Fortune, herself a Grassroots winner at two.
The other Grassroots trophies were captured by Duc Dorleans in 1:54.3 and Sly Ruler in 1:54.1.
The two-year-old pacing colts make their fourth Grassroots stop at Sudbury Downs on August 22, while Gold Series action resumes at Mohawk Racetrack on Thursday, Aug. 16 with three Gold Eliminations for the two-year-old trotting colts. Post time for Thursday’s event is 7:10 pm.
For complete results please go to Mohawk Racetrack Results — August 13, 2012