Unred Hanover, driven by Paul MacDonell, pulled off the series sweep of the $60,000 Town Pro Pacing Series on Thursday evening at Mohawk.
The three-year-old pacing filly sat in the pocket before the opening panel controlled by Persistent (Scott Zeron) as the fillies reached that station in :26.4.
Unred Hanover sweeps the Town Pro series. (New Image Media)
As the sophomore pacers marched to the half, MacDonell angled Unred Hanover out of the pocket and to command to lead her rivals past the half in :55.2 and three-quarters in 1:23.3.
Turning for home, Persistent was stalking in the pocket with Lil Miss Bourbon (Randy Waples) on the outside. MacDonell then asked his charge for more pace and the six-time winner responded as she edged away from her rivals in deep stretch to score the win in 1:51. Persistent stayed for second with Mileys Big World (Sylvain Filion) completing the triactor.
Despite winning both preliminary legs, MacDonell admits that was aware of his competition heading into the final.
“There were two or three horses in there that could give me a run for my money,” MacDonell said following the win. “Obviously, Persistent, Mileys Big World and Docs Hope, as well. There were three or four substantial fillies that could give you a run on any given night.
“I thought it was a good idea to control [the pace] from the half on,” he continued. “Scott [Zeron] got his horse out of there real fast and he covered me up for the first quarter of the mile and it worked out in our favour.”
Travis Umphrey trains and co-owns the daughter of Western Ideal along with Terry Hamilton and Shir Win Racing Stable. Unraced as a two-year-old, Unred Hanover has crafted an impressive 6-3-0 record from nine starts this season and $98,000 in the bank.
(WEG)
