Georgian Downs: Two stakes races featured on Sunday night

Ontario’s top 3-year-old pacing colts and geldings co-headlined Sunday’s Family Day event at Georgian Downs — sharing top billing with the older trotters competing in the Honorable Earl Rowe Invitational Trot — and they delivered a blockbuster performance in the C$156,400 Ontario Sires Stakes Gold Series event.

Meadowlands Pace champion Best In Show was sent off the slight favorite over division point leader Century Farroh, and driver Bob McClure sent the fan’s choice straight to the front from post three. Century Farroh dropped in behind Best In Show and was quickly hemmed in by Bronx Seelster powering up the outer lane. Through the 26 4/5 opening quarter and 55 second half, not much changed; Best In Show led the field, Century Farroh was breathing down McClure’s neck in the pocket, and Bronx Seelster was menacing from the outer lane.

As Best In Show paced toward the 1:23 1/5 three-quarters Bronx Seelster seemed to stall, and the colts behind him ranged out three and four-wide, but Bronx Seelster battled back and kept Century Farroh pinned to the rail as the colts turned for home. In the stretch Best In Show drifted ever so slightly off the rail, and driver Sylvain Filion did not waste a moment, sending Century Farroh surging toward the wire. Best In Show and Century Farroh finished in lock-step, and it took a magnifying glass to determine that Century Farroh’s nose was in front. Stag Party closed hard to take third in the 1:51 1/5 mile.

“I thought, oh we’re in trouble here, because Bronx Seelster just hung on enough that he couldn’t get out. I thought, oh boy, but he just got out very late,” said Century Farroh’s trainer Dr. Ian Moore. “Sylvain was coming in the gate, he didn’t think he won, that’s how close it was. Two noses on the line together.

“I saw the photo there, they both had their nose on the line; I guess we had a little bit more of it.”

Century Farroh has been flawless through the first four Gold Series legs this season, and his Ontario Sires Stakes win streak extends back to last August. As a 2-year-old the son of Mach Three and Beachy Girl finished up his Grassroots campaign with two regular season wins and a victory in the Grassroots Championship.

Through all 10 of his sophomore starts, Century Farroh has only been bested twice. He finished seventh in his North America Cup elimination on June 8 and last Saturday (Aug. 10) he finished third in the Carl Milstein Memorial at Northfield Park in Ohio.

“We were pleased; he got $44,000 American, so it was worth the trip down,” said Moore. “It’s the only time he’s going to be away from home really; he’s not staked to anything else.”

Ratchford Stable NS owns Century Farroh, who boosted his career earnings to C$510,633 with Sunday’s victory. The colt will make his next start in the Aug. 31 Simcoe Stake and then finish up the Gold Series regular season on Sept. 13, both at Woodbine Mohawk Park. The top 10 point earners will then compete in the season ending Super Final at Woodbine Mohawk Park on Oct. 12.

“He can use a week off again, that’s three in a row for him,” said Moore. “With that level of horse you’ve got to give them time off, you can’t keep racing their guts out all the time, very few of them will survive at the same level.

“I’d like to have him still good for the Super Final; he must have made the Super Final by now,” he added with a chuckle.

Following Century Farroh’s thrilling victory, eight of the top aged trotters stepped onto the track for the C$75,000 Honorable Earl Rowe Invitational Trot, and the two mares in the field gave fans another thrilling battle. P L Jill and Dream Together both left smartly from posts one and four, and the pair started their battle heading by the 56 4/5 half; Dream Together on the inside, and P L Jill pressing her from the outer lane. Through the 1:24 1/5 three-quarters the mares went head-to-head and down the stretch they continued to battle tooth and nail, with P L Jill getting by late for a three-quarter length score in 1:53 1/5.

Mario Baillargeon drove Kadabra daughter P L Jill to the win for trainer Ben Baillargeon and owners Prince Lee Acres, Jill Coleman, and Alan Christensen. Prince Lee Acres also bred the mare, who now has seven wins and C$177,620 in earnings in her 6-year-old season.

--press release (Ontario Sires Stakes)--