Woodbine Mohawk Park: Grand Circuit action begins with Champlain Stakes

Trainer Marcus Melander joined forces with driver Doug McNair to win a pair of Champlain Stakes flights for 2-year-old male trotters on Thursday night at Woodbine Mohawk Park, and driver James MacDonald also had a double, tallying with filly Adare Castle and gelding Twin B Archie.

Melander and McNair's first victor was Letsdoit S in the opening C$62,307 test for the boys. Letsdoit S took over the lead past the 28 3/5 quarter, and after a 58 1/5 half and a 1:27 4/5 three-quarters, he trotted home in 28 1/5 to defeat Mr Fritter (Bob McClure) by three lengths in 1:56. World At War Deo (Jody Jamieson) was third.

"Just jogging him around the post parade, he just feels like a nice horse. He trots nice, and he's real professional. It makes your job a lot easier," said McNair. "When I got him in the race, he had his ears up the whole way, and he knew exactly what to do."

Letsdoit S, a Nuncio-Bacio (Muscle Hill) colt, is a Stall Tz homebred. He has two wins and a second from four attempts, has now earned C$49,087, and paid $2.90 to win as the favorite.

In the last C$62,307 test for colts and geldings, Temporal Hanover and McNair were fourth at the 29 second opening quarter, but he followed a two-wide move by Duly Resolved (Paul MacDonell) in the backstretch and took over the top spot from that rival just beyond the 57 3/5 half. After getting away with a soft tempo around the final turn that resulted in a 1:28 1/5 three-quarters, Temporal Hanover used a stalled first-over Delgado (Scott Young) through the lane to keep Duly Resolved boxed in until it was too late, winning by a neck in 1:57.

"Marcus said he's a nice-gaited horse and you can race him from anywhere. I kind of really wanted to follow Mac, or if not, be cutting the race out myself," relayed McNair. "Where we ended up in the first turn, I figured there was no way I was going to be coming first-over, so I tried my luck down the backside.

"In the stretch, I don't know if he was empty or just green, but he didn't trot away from them. I wasn't backing into them, that's for sure. I'm just not sure this one was just 100 percent. It was the first or second day he was here, so we'll go from there. I imagine he'll be a lot better next start."

Amg Stable Inc., Kenneth Kjellgren, Rick Wahlstedt, and Heights Stable own Temporal Hanover, a Walner-Think Twice (Cantab Hall) colt. Bred by Hanover Shoe Farms, he was a $55,000 Standardbred Horse Sale purchase, and he has compiled a record of 3-2-0 from six starts, good for C$114,087 in the bank. He returned $5.50 to win.

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As for MacDonald, he claimed his first triumph in a C$85,975 Champlain for fillies with Adare Castle in 1:56 2/5. Adare Castle went to the top from post two, carved out fractions of 28 3/5, 58 4/5, and 1:28 2/5, and used a 28 second final panel to win by 2 1/2 lengths over Samosa (Jamieson). Lady Montague (Chris Christoforou) checked in third.

"She's awesome. That's a long way for a 2-year-old to go on the front by themselves. She's kind of lazy. Going to the half, I know Bob (McClure) had said she was real quiet and like when you called on her she'd go, but I was starting to wonder if maybe she was just no good tonight because she wouldn't pick a line up. As soon as I called on her at the top of the stretch, it was just nitrous right now," remarked MacDonald. "She's a nice filly. That's a good start for her, and she's heading into the big ones the right way.

"I had to call on her to get her into gear, but then once she got into top gear, she was just kind of on cruise. I think she's got lots more in the tank, and I'd like to see her stack up against some of the better ones."

Trainer Mark Etsell also co-owns Adare Castle, a daughter of Muscle Mass-Pacific Edge (Andover Hall), with partners Robert Newton, Graham Hopkins, and Peter Porter. Adare Castle, who was bred by Ed Lohmeyer and fetched $10,000 at the 2020 Standardbred Horse Sale, has won all four of her tries and has stashed away C$195,807. She paid $2.30 to win as the 1-9 favorite.

In the second of three Champlains for colts and geldings, MacDonald worked out a second-over trip for Twin B Archie, and he got up in a 28 second final quarter to win by three-parts of a length in 1:54 3/5. Pretender (Jamieson) crossed the wire second but was placed seventh for interfering with Drinks At Home (McClure) coming off the last turn. That elevated Devereux Seelster (Austin Sorrie) to second, with Mercutio (Sylvain Filion) promoted to third.

"I feel really good. We're hopefully going into next week pretty good for the William Wellwood," said victorious trainer/co-owner Scott McEneny. "It's a tough schedule for him, but he tries every week. He missed three weeks going into last week, and he maybe come up a little short, but he still raced tough last week, too."

McEneny co-owns Twin B Archie, an Archangel-Affair Hall (Deweycheatumnhowe) gelding, with partners Domenic Chiaravalle, Floyd Marshall, and Martwest Racing Stable. Twin B Archie, bred by Twinbrook Limited, was acquired for $52,000 at last year's Standardbred Horse Sale, and he has two wins and three second from five trips behind the gate. He pushed his bankroll to C$95,064 and returned $5.00 to win.

The only horse able to break the Melander, McNair, and MacDonald hold on the stakes action was Delilah Hanover in the first C$85,975 Champlain clash for fillies. Positioned last at the 28 3/5 quarter and 58 second half, Delilah Hanover got into sixth from third-over at the 1:27 1/5 three-quarters, then charged home in 28 4/5 to prevail by 3 1/2 lengths in 1:56 4/5. Eternal Lee (MacDonell) was next, followed by Missy Trix (MacDonald).

"It was a little anxious early on. She was a long way off, and she actually didn't look very comfortable the first three-eighths or so. When he got her in the outer tier and got her in the flow she seemed to pick the bit up. She always gets home good," stated winning trainer Nifty Norman. "I told Bob that she wants to have horses in front of her. I didn't really mean all of them, but anyway, it worked out good. The trip worked out good, and she got home good. She looked good in the stretch. She finishes up good, so that's what you need."

David McDuffee, Mel Hartman, Paul Bordogna, and Mary Kinsey-Arnold own Delilah Hanover, a Muscle Hill-Danielle Hanover (Cantab Hall) half-sister to Darlene Hanover. A $440,000 Standardbred Horse Sale buy bred by Hanover Shoe Farms, Delilah Hanover has a pair of wins and two thirds from six starts, has put away C$117,998, and paid $3.40 to win.