Freshman making dreams come true at Mohawk

Robertthebruce and Legacy N Diamonds were both impressive winners of their respective $15,000(C) divisions in Monday night's opening round of the Dream Maker Series for 2-year-old colt and gelding pacers at Mohawk Racetrack.

Robertthebruce, a son of Real Desire, stopped the clock in 1:54 for driver Brad Forward while Legacy N Diamonds, sired by The Panderosa, scored in his split in 1:54.1 for driver Chris Christoforou.

In the opening division, Robertthebruce was sent straight to the front by Forward from post one and led until the halfway point, when he suddenly made a brief break and veered to the outside of the track. That allowed pocket-sitter Shadow Play to scoot up the inside of the pacesetter and challenge for the lead.

The top two then battled side by side through a :28 third quarter and continued to wage war in a :27.4 final frame with Robertthebruce edging past late for a quarter-length tally.

"He's just a young horse and he caught his eye to something up the backside," said driver Forward. "He stepped over something, so I put him in the center of the racetrack. I wasn't fully asking him in the stretch, but I kept at him to keep his attention on the rest of the race."

It was the first career start for the $125,000 yearling who is trained by Bill Elliott for owner Antonio Chiaravalle of Hamilton, Ont.-the same man who owned the series' namesake.

Legacy N Diamonds also took command from the outset in the second split and laid down all the fractions of :28.1, :57.3 and 1:27.2, before turning on the jets with a :26.4 final quarter. He held off stablemate Santanna Blue Chip by three-quarters of a length with Zepplin Blue Chip another length back in third.

Trained by Carl Jamieson who co-owns along with Ken Henwood of Mississauga, Ont., the colt also survived a slight bobble at the top of the stretch to remain perfect in just two career starts.

"The colt switched gears so fast tonight, he almost made a break," said winning driver Christoforou. "He had a monstrous burst of speed in the lane. I was surprised how much go he had in the lane. Carl Jamieson has really come up with another pair of monstrous colts and has proved once again that he should have three O'Brien Awards by now."

The Dream Maker Pacing Series continues next Monday night at Mohawk. (WEG)

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