SARNIA, ON — Witness To Fame clocked the fastest win in seven Grassroots divisions at Hiawatha Horse Park on Thursday evening, circling the five-eighths mile oval in 1:54.
The three-year-old pacing filly and driver Trevor Henry led from start to finish and hit the wire an impressive five lengths up on Highland Luck and J N Princess. It was Witness To Fame’s third win of the season and her second in Grassroots action, boosting her point tally to 112. Stratford resident Bud Sinclair trains the daughter of Apaches Fame for his partner Dr. Norman Amos of St. Marys.
Trevor Henry also claimed a win in the first Grassroots division, piloting Easy Operator to a one length score in 1:55.1 for trainer Joe Stutzman and owner-breeder William Varney of Bangor, ME. It was the Armbro Operative daughter’s second straight victory and her second appearance in a Grassroots winner’s circle.
Carolina Moon survived a tough trip up the outside to claim the runner-up share of the $15,394 purse and E Business nudged out favourite Lady Lola for second.
Ross Battin, who at the halfway mark in the season has a 63 point lead over Henry in the Lampman Cup race, also claimed a victory Thursday night. The veteran reinsman piloted Youthful Seelster to a smart 1:54.2 come-from-behind effort in the eighth race. Favourite Fabulous Flori suffered her first Grassroots defeat of the season, finishing second, and Moonlit Tori rounded out the top three.
The Monkton resident trains Island Fantasy daughter Youthful Seelster for his partners Pauline Patterson of Brussels and Walter Nicholson of Monkton. Through eight starts she boasts a record of two wins, four seconds and one third.
Last year’s Grassroots champion Borderlinegorgious scored her second win of the season with a 1:54.4 effort in Race 9. The Rambaran daughter and Dave Wall cruised across the finish line three lengths up on Armbro Cinema and five ahead of Landfair Visa. Wall’s Wall Tyme Stables Inc. of Komoka own Borderlingorgious and his son Dean Wall handles training duties on the winner of $170,286.
Wall also picked up a victory aboard Rambaran daughter Rambition in the third Grassroots division. The veteran reinsman opted to send the filly to the front from Post 6 and she carved out all the fractions without facing a challenge, hitting the wire in 1:54.2 for trainer Phil Coole of Puslinch, Sheila Murray of Kincardine and Paul Johnston of Peterborough.
Curious Cutie and Lucky Angel were the second and third-place finishers in Race 3.
The other Grassroots divisions went to Rustle N Sizzle in 1:54.2 and Sealcrest Diva in 1:56.4.
The three-year-old pacing fillies make their fifth Grassroots start at Windsor Raceway on Sept. 7, while Ontario Sires Stakes action returns to Hiawatha Horse Park on Thursday, Sept. 15 with the fifth event for the two-year-old pacing fillies.
For complete Grassroots results please go to:
http://www.standardbredcanada.ca/results/data/rsarfth.html