(Photo of driver Rick Zeron and Anikadabra courtesy of New Image Media)
Mohawk Racetrack hosted the second Grassroots event for the two-year-old trotting fillies on Thursday evening and fans welcomed three first-time Ontario Sires Stakes winners back in front of the grandstand.
In the first $18,000 Grassroots division, Mohawk fans wisely overlooked the mistake made by Inner Drive in the July 10 season opener and sent the Bob McIntosh trainee off as their top choice. The Kadabra daughter trotted smoothly away from Post 2 and was sitting second when Parkhill Nocredit hit the opening quarter in :29.4. Driver Paul MacDonell opted to send the favourite to the front, but Inner Drive was only in command briefly before Hab Faith came calling.
Hab Faith took control just past the 1:00 half and continued to lead the field to the 1:29.1 three-quarters, but once the fillies squared up in the stretch Guelph resident MacDonell tipped Inner Drive out of the pocket and the long-legged lass was able to reel in Hab Faith and secure a neck victory in 1:59.4. Parkhill Nocredit was two and one-quarter lengths back in third.
“She’s a nice big filly with a great pedigree who should improve with each start,” said trainer McIntosh of Inner Drive, whose mother, Urge To Splurge, is a half-sister to former Ontario Sires Stakes superstar Text Me, who was the Super Final champion in both 2010 and 2011 and earned $931,853 in his career.
Windsor resident McIntosh bred and shares ownership of Inner Drive with Dave Boyle of Bowmanville, ON and C S X Stables of Liberty Center, OH. In three starts the filly has tallied one win, one second and $12,500.
The second Grassroots division saw the fan’s second choice, Powerful Mission, reel in fan favourite Man Shes Hot to earn her first victory. The Manofmanymissions daughter and driver Phil Hudon sprinted down the stretch to a 1:59.2 clocking, three lengths ahead of Man Shes Hot and pacesetter Whole Lot Of Sugar.
“She’s a nice filly. She run last week, but I liked her a lot,” said Guelph resident Hudon, who salvaged a fifth-place finish in an overnight event at Mohawk on July 14 after the filly made an early miscue. “She has a great attitude and trots nice, she was well in hand.”
Michigan-based trainer Kevin St. Charles conditions Powerful Mission for owner E C S Racing LLC of Rockford, MI. Thursday’s outing was Powerful Mission’s second start and her first appearance in the Grassroots program.
The final Grassroots trophy went home with Anikadabra, who got a confident steer from driver Rick Zeron. Starting from Post 7, Zeron sent Anikadabra straight to the front and never looked back, cruising through fractions of :28.4, :59.2 and 1:29.4 en route to a 1:59.3 victory. Fan favourite P C Pipe Dream was three lengths back in second and Late Shift was another length back in third.
“She’s a real nice filly, very, very nice,” said Oakville resident Zeron, who pilots Anikadabra for trainer Rob Fellows of Rockwood, ON. “Very sensible, very knowledgeable, very smart, everything you ask her to do she does.
“Rob had said to me that he was really, really high on this filly. He really likes her a lot, and it showed tonight that Rob was right, that she’s a real nice filly,” the reinsman added. “She just does everything you ask her to do. She can leave the gate like a pacer, which is great because you’re never going to get yourself in any trouble, and you know every time she heard a horse behind her coming, and the guys barking at their horses, she just took off by herself. I was just sitting in the cart with her tonight.”
A Kadabra half-sister to $1.2 million winner Resolve, Anikadabra is owned by her breeders, Edward Wilson of Seagrave, ON and Michael Pozefsky of Saratoga Springs, NY. The filly is a second generation product of the partner’s breeding program. Her mother Anikawiesahalee is a half-sister to their former Gold Series winner Wilsonator ($496,049) and Grassroots champion Legzy ($277,660).
Thursday’s outing was Anikadabra’s second; she finished fourth in the Grassroots opener at Georgian Downs on July 10.
The freshman trotting fillies will make their third Grassroots start at Grand River Raceway on Friday, July 29.
Ontario Sires Stakes action continues at Mohawk Racetrack on both Friday and Saturday evening. Friday’s program features six $18,000 Grassroots divisions for the three-year-old pacing fillies and Saturday’s card will see the third Gold Series battle between the three-year-old pacing colt titans. Post time for both events is 7:30 pm.
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