After winning the Little Brown Jug in Delaware, Ohio this past Thursday for the first time in his career, one would think that driver Yannick Gingras could breathe a sigh of accomplishment and perhaps relief from his hectic schedule.
Nah, he’s not, in fact he is at Hoosier Park Saturday night for their Super Night program and then on Sunday it’s off to the Hippodrome 3R in Trois-Rivieres, Quebec for the $200,000 Prix D’Ete for four-year-old pacers.
“Lately it never ends,” Gingras said. “One big stakes race program after another, but I love it.”
Coming to Trois-Rivieres and racing at the Hippodrome 3R is home to native son Gingras as it also is to fellow driver Daniel Dube. With the homecoming both drivers are in demand -- Dube has drives in nine of the 10 races and Gingras in five of the 10 races.
“It is always fun to come back to Quebec to race but then again for $200,000 makes it even better,” Gingras said. “It’s going to be a great time. They have some good horses coming to compete and it should be a great day for the track and the fans.
“They [3R] has done such a great job bringing back harness racing in Quebec,” Gingras said. “They have been getting great publicity and renewed interest in the sport and that is very good. Hopefully they will build on this race and racing will grow.”
The main reason Gingras is coming back home to race is because he is the driver of Sunfire Blue Chip, who is the 5-2 morning line favourite in the $200,000 Prix D’Ete. The son of American Ideal comes to Quebec on a four-race winning streak for trainer Jimmy Takter and co-owners Christina Takter, John & Jim Fielding, Brixton Medical Ab and R.A.W. Equine.
In his last start at Pocono Downs in a $50,000 Open, Yannick and Sunfire Chip Chip teamed up for a lifetime mark of 1:49.2. The only problem is that the Hippodrome 3R is a half-mile track and Sunfire Blue Chip drew the far outside post eight.
“I think I have the sharpest horse in the race,” Gingras said. “He has won his last four starts and is coming into the race in great form. I know the track at Hippodrome 3R and it is a tough task from the eight-hole. But I know the horse is sharp and we will give it our all. I am not coming home to Quebec just to go around the track twice.
“If I was not in the race with 'Sunfire,'” Gingras said, “I would have to go with either Lucan Hanover or Mach It So. 'Lucan' is really good on a half-mile and has been sharp lately and Mach It So can close so strong. I know he won last month at Yonkers so he can handle a half-mile track.
“It would be great to see the local favourite do well,” Gingras said of Duc Dorleans, “but he has a tough task ahead of him. He knows this track better than anyone else having raced on it before but he is facing some tough horses he had not gone against before.
“I think it will be a great race for bringing back the Prix D’Ete,” Gingras said. “I only hope that the weather is good so everyone will come and enjoy it.”
(QJC)