Matron elims also held

Total Truth and Shark Gesture won the two $35,000 Progress Pace eliminations at Dover Downs Sunday while Trond Smedshammer drove two Matron elims with a favorite Queen Serene and 22-1 longshot Likeabatoutahell. Buck I St. Pat and Algiers Hall won the other Matron trots while My Little Dragon took the Matron pace for 3-year-old fillies.

Ron Pierce left quickly with the George Teague-trained Total Truth in one of the Progress Pace elims and never looked back on the way to a 1:50.4 triumph. Armbro Deuce had the two-hole seat and finished second best for George Brennan while Perfect Union with David Miller took third money. Western Guy and Brian Sears also qualified for next Sunday's Progress Pace final.

Total Truth won for the sixth time this season and lifted his 2006 earnings to $1,258,476 for Only Money Inc. and Teague Inc.

Shark Gesture, fresh from victory in the $610,000 Breeders Crown last week, cut out a 1:51.2 mile for Brennan. The Erv Miller-trained Cam's Card Shark colt held off a fast-finishing Mr. Feelgood, reined by Canada's leading driver Mark MacDonald, with another Teague trainee, Western Ace and Pierce, the show horse. Tyrant Hanover, handled by Hall of Famer Mike Lachance, was fourth.

In the first $28,362 Matron elim on the card, Buck I St. Pat with Dave Palone in the bike, moved into the lead with a strong backstretch brush and then rolled on for a 1:54.2 victory. Howard Taylor, Ed Gold, Abe Basen and Bob Fuller own the Mickey Burke-conditioned winner of 10 races this year and $162,146 in purses.

Birmingham, with Tony Morgan, was runner-up in front of Emantee and Sears. Bye Bye Kerry, with Pierce at the helm, finished fourth. Queen Serene, owned by Timo Yli Panula, scored a 1:55.2 victory to complete Smedshammer's trainer-driver double. The Dream Vacation filly was followed home by Love On The Rocks, with Brennan driving, and Incredible Fortuna, steered by Tim Tetrick. Claudia is the other qualifier for the final.

The race before, Smedshammer made a bold move heading to the three-quarters with longshot Likeabatoutahell and romped home in 1:54.3 for Mike Andrews. Limbo Glide, with Pierce, finished second. Wildwood Days and Jack Parker Jr. was third.

My Little Dragon, driven by Sears, made a powerful move on the backstretch zooming from seventh on the outside after the half to take the front three wide at the three-quarters and then took over on the final turn pacing her final quarter in 28 seconds for an easy 1:51.4 conquest.

It was the second Matron win for owner Adam Victor & Son Stable. Their 2-year-old filly Little Miss Dragon set a 1:52.2 world record on Saturday winning an elim breaking My Little Dragon's former record in last season's Matron. Caviart Sydney, piloted by Pierce, was the place finisher in front of Ideal Weather and Yannick Gingras. The first eight finishers in the 11-filly field all qualify for next week's lucrative final. (Dover Downs)

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