Grand Circuit week continued Friday night at Mohawk Racetrack with three-year-old trotting fillies and two-year-old trotting colts and geldings in the spotlight.
The $221,204 Simcoe Stakes and $212,447 Champlain Stakes each featured two divisions on Friday evening.
In the $111,352 second Simcoe division, Caprice Hill was back in her familiar spot in the Mohawk winner’s circle after another dominating victory.
Leaving from post nine, Caprice Hill and driver Randy Waples were parked around the first turn, but eventually got the front at three-eighths. The daughter of Kadabra cruised through middle-half fractions of :57 and 1:25.4.
In the stretch, Caprice Hill trotted home effortlessly in :27.2 to win by 6-1/2 lengths in 1:53.1. Miss Tezsla finished second, while Gin And Lindy was third.
“Horses like (Caprice Hill), they don’t come around too often,” said Waples. “I just hope that she keeps her form and carries on through the rest of the year because she is just an amazing filly to be around, like she is so smart and a complete professional.”
A daughter of Kadabra, Caprice Hill surpassed the $1 million mark in career earnings with her Simcoe Stakes victory. She now has six wins in nine starts this season and 13 victories overall for owner Tom Hill.
Caprice Hill won a division of the Casual Breeze Stakes last week and now has three wins in a row. She paid $2.50 to win.
Just like Caprice Hill, Emoticon Hanover picked up her second consecutive Grand Circuit victory in the $109,852 first Simcoe division.
Driven by Sylvain Filion, Emoticon Hanover got stretched out around the first turn, as she was parked by the first station in :26.4, before clearing to command. After catching a second-quarter breather, Emoticon Hanover was confronted around the final turn by Double Exposure.
Emoticon Hanover reached the three-quarter pole in 1:26.1 and promptly turned aside her challenger and pulled away to win by two lengths in 1:54.2.
“That was the first time I got strung out like that with her,” said Filion following the victory. “But as soon as I cleared to the front I was able to relax in the middle-half and she was real strong on the end of it.”
Dream Child finished second, while Royal Charm was third.
A daughter of Kadabra, Emoticon Hanover is trained by Luc Blais for owner Determination of Montreal, Quebec. She now has five wins in nine starts this season for earnings of over $272,000.
Thursday’s victory was the ninth career score for the Ontario Sires Stakes standout and her career bankroll now sits at $491,584. Emoticon Hanover paid $2.60 to win.
(Standardbred Canada)
