WINDSOR, ON — Windsor Raceway showcases outstanding Ontario-breds this weekend with Gold Series Eliminations for the three-year-old trotting fillies and three-year-old pacing colts and a $130,000 Gold Final for the two-year-old pacing fillies.
The trotting fillies kick off the Ontario Sires Stakes bonanza in the eighth race, with nine fillies competing for $101,298 in one elimination. The talented fillies head into Sunday’s event from the Standardbred Owners and Breeders of Ontario Stake at Mohawk Racetrack on Sept. 20, where the ultra consistent Early Secret swept her elimination and the Final in impressive fashion.
Owned by breeder William Loyens of London and Malcolm MacPhail of Dover Centre, Early Secret sits atop the division standings with 170 points in spite of the fact that she has yet to win a Gold Final this season. In 12 starts the Paul Walker trainee boasts five wins, five seconds, one third and one fourth-place finish for earnings of $262,562.
The Earl daughter and driver Mario Baillargeon will be hampered by the outside Post 9 in Race 8, but with just one elimination all nine fillies will advance to the Oct. 6 Gold Final.
Next up to the plate are the three-year-old pacing colts, who will flex their muscles in Races 9 and 11. Among the colts vying for a top four finish are a pair trained by Windsor’s Bob McIntosh.
The Cammissioner will start from Post 5 in the ninth race and Im A Camedian gets Post 4 in Race 11. Both colts will be driven by leading reinsman Chris Christoforou, who is hoping for solid performances from the pair.
“The Cammissioner has really hit his form since Calgary,” says Christoforou, who piloted the colt to a two heat win the Nat Christie Stake at Calgary’s Stampede Park on Aug. 25. “His gait is a lot better and his attitude has really improved. He has really turned around.”
Since his Nat Christie win the Camluck colt been flawless, scoring wins in the Sept. 7 Simcoe Stakes and in an overnight event at The Red Mile in Lexington, KY on Sept. 20 and inflating his 2002 bank balance to $188,773. McIntosh shares ownership on The Cammissioner with Dwight Stacey of Mitchell and Michael Kohler of Sterling Heights, MI.
Im A Camedian heads into Sunday’s event off a runner-up finish in Lexington on Sept. 20 and Christoforou hopes that will set the unpredictable youngster up for a successful outing.
“He’s kind of a funny horse. He gets to one knee pretty good, but if he’s good and he’s travelling well he can be effective,” says the winner of 3,297 races. “Depending on the day he can be a threat, he does have a big motor.”
Owned by McIntosh, Stacey and Al McIntosh Holdings Inc. of Leamington, Im A Camedian currently sits ninth in the division standings with 33 points. The Cammissioner sits just below the cut off for the top 10 with 13 points. The top four finishers from each elimination, plus one fifth-place finisher drawn by lot, will join the trotting fillies on Oct. 6 for their second last Gold Final.
McIntosh and Christoforou will also team up in the two-year-old pacing filly Gold Final with Please Me Please, who was a handy winner in her elimination last weekend. The Camluck daughter stopped the clock in 1:56.1, two and a quarter lengths ahead of her opponents.
“She has been getting better every week,” says Christoforou. “Last week she got a nice comfortable trip. The fractions were to her liking an she paced home strong.”
Hampering the Camluck daughter’s chances in Race 12 is Post 8, but Christoforou hopes Please Me Please can use her versatility to overcome the outside starting position.
“She’s pretty versatile, she can race from the front or come from off the pace. She’s pretty easy to drive that way,” he notes. “Hopefully I can put her in a contending position.”
Bob and Al McIntosh share ownership on Please Me Please with Dwight Stacey. Windsor Raceway’s Sunday evening program begins at 6:30 pm and will build up to the Ontario-bred showcase in Races 8, 9 11 and 12.