Whatta Hotty wins Gold Final in personal best 1:56.4

Whatta Hotty kicked off her owners’ Thanksgiving Day celebrations with an impressive $140,000 Gold Final victory at Rideau Carleton Raceway on Sunday evening. The defending three-year-old trotting filly Gold Final champion was eased away from Post 3 by regular reinsman Garrett Whelan and was sitting second last when Pleasure Girls reached the opening quarter in :28. Pleasure Girls and Sylvain Filion continued to lead the field through the :57.3 half, and Whatta Hotty continued to sit on the rail, five lengths behind the leaders.

When Pleasure Girls trotted by the three-quarters in 1:27 she was under heavy pressure from Warrawee June, and Whatta Hotty was still sitting on the rail, last in the field of eight. As the fillies turned for home, Pleasure Girls seemed to have disposed of Warrawee June, and Whatta Hotty’s many supporters were ready to toss their tickets, figuring that the fan favourite could not make up the four lengths and five horses that separated her from a victory.

Fortunately for their fans, Whelan and Whatta Hotty still had full tank off gas and the pair shot up the stretch to snatch a three-quarter length victory away from Pleasure Girls and Warrawee June, stopping the clock in a personal best 1:56.4. The margin between Pleasure Girls and Warrawee June was so minuscule that racing officials declared a dead heat for second, leaving Gaelic Mistress in fourth and Kadealia with fifth-place honours.

Prior to her Sept. 17 Gold Elimination win at Flamboro Downs, Whatta Hotty had not won a race all season. Since then, the Yankee Paco daughter has been flawless, sweeping the Flamboro Gold Series, and winning her elimination in Ottawa last weekend.

Troy resident Jim Whelan trains the daughter of former Gold Series stalwart Our Kuli Girl ($333,303) for his partners Terry, Mary and Clarence Devos of Langton. The group also bred Whatta Hotty, who boosted her sophomore earnings to $255,175 with the win.

Whatta Hotty wrapped up the Gold Series regular season atop the division standings with a total of 225 points, and is the only two-time Gold Final winner in the three-year-old trotting filly division. The top 10 point earners will now turn their attention to the $300,000 Super Final on Nov. 15 at Woodbine Racetrack, while the others have one last Trillium Series event on their calendar, Nov. 2 at Western Fair Raceway.

Sunday’s contest completed Rideau Carleton Raceway’s 2008 Ontario Sires Stakes schedule, which saw outstanding performances from seven of the eight provincial divisions, highlighted by a track record performance from two-year-old trotting filly Cumin First. (OSS)

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