— Sportswriter (above, Dave Landry photo) became the fifth horse to win the Metro and the NA Cup joining Presidential Ball, Gothic Dream, Rocknroll Hanover and Somebeachsomewhere.
— This year’s NA Cup marked the first ever meeting of two sub-1:50 freshmen, Sportswriter and One More Laugh.
— Casie Coleman is the 11th straight different trainer to win the NA Cup.
— Sportswriter was the only finalist who never left Canada.
Home cookin’
All four marquee finals (North America Cup, Fan Hanover, Elegantimage and Goodtimes) were won by Mohawk/Woodbine regulars on June 26 — the only time this happened previously was in 2008:
2010 — Mark MacDonald (Sportswriter, Western Silk)
2010 — Jody Jamieson (Sing Jesse Sing)
2010 — Trevor Ritchie (Ultimate Cameron)
2008 — Paul MacDonnell (Somebeachsomewhere, Lantern Kronos)
2008 — Mark MacDonald (Chancey Lady)
2008 — Trevor Ritchie (Clerk Magistrate)
2010 ‘firsts’ for the NA Cup
— The first winner for sire Artsplace (in his final crop)
— The first winner for Mark MacDonald, Casie Coleman and Steve Calhoun
— The first time in more than two decades that no nightly regular from the Meadowlands landed in the top three
— The first win of the year for Sportswriter
— The first time the North America Cup has gone under 1:49 two straight years. Sportswriter’s 1:48.3 came on the heels of the 1:48.1 by Well Said in 2009.
The million-dollar training trick
It’s been done before, but not often. Del Insko’s barn did it in 1980 by winning the $2,011,000 Wilson with Land Grant. Billy Haughton did it when Nihilator took the richest race ever, the $2,161,000 Wilson in 1984. Brett Pelling did it during the day/night of August 10, 1996. Greg Peck did it last year winning the Peter Haughton with Holiday Road ($523,600) and then followed it up with Muscle Hill ($1,520,333). Yes, it’s a rare feat for a trainer — the million-dollar day — and Casie Coleman just joined the club by winning both the $666,000 Fan Hanover with Western Silk and the $1,500,000 Pepsi North America Cup with Sportswriter.
A night of great finishes
It was a competitive night of racing on June 26, to say the least. Races four through eight were decided by a combined one-and-three-quarter lengths! Sing Jesse Sing (Goodtimes) held on by a head, Western Silk (Fan Hanover) a neck, Allthatgltrsgold (NA Cup consolation) a neck, Sportswriter (NA Cup) three-quarters-of-a-length and Ultimate Cameron (Elegantimate) by just a half-length.
Swan songs
The first crop of Rocknroll Hanover had the North America Cup favourite Rock N Roll Heaven. But when the dust cleared, it was the last crop of Artsplace first — Sportswriter — and the next-to-last crop of Western Hanover second.
For Artsplace, it was his initial score in the Cup, while Western Hanover was looking for his record breaking fifth win (he remains tied with Cam Fella at four). Artsplace passed away in the fall of 2006 and Western Hanover was lost the following summer.
