Well Said Won North America Cup In Record Time
Driver Ron Pierce Certain of Colt's Ability Against Betting Favorite
Jul 23, 2009
Veteran cart specialist Ron Pierce, already a Hall of Fame driver, claimed pacer Well Said would have the last word at June's $1 million Pepsi North America Cup XXVI final, and he was right on the money.
Well Said went double with dazzling performances at Mohawk Raceway in Campbellville, Ontario. He dashed to a 1:50 in the NA Cup elimination the week before the final run-offs, then sent heads spinning with a blazing 1:48.1 in the championship final heat.
The colt's elimination round was the fastest of the competition, and his final was a stakes, track, and Canadian record-smashing performance. Well Said breezed through the final's last quarter in :25.4.
Pierce Had Promised Well Said Would Be Better
After his 1:50 elimination didn't make Well Said the favorite for June 27's final, Pierce claimed his Western Hanover colt would run better in the final heat. Speculative fans apparently didn't take that claim to heart, as they made Keep It Real the favorite to take the Cup.
Bettors had done the same thing only one other time in the running of the NA Cup final. In 1994, Cam's Card Shark won the title without benefit of being the betting favorite after finishing second in his elimination round.
Keep It Real finished second to Well Said in their elimination heat.
John Campbell Second With Art Colony
Fan favorite and all-time winningest driver John Campbell challenged with Art Colony in the NA Cup final, but fell 3-1/4 lengths shy of the speedy Well Said.
Well Said was having it all his way after he and Pierce blew away from the fifth spot behind the gate. If I Can Dream, also an elimination winner driven by George Brennan, wrenched the top position away from Mr. Wiggles, another elim winner handled by Corey Callahan, at the start, while Keep It Real went contentedly to fourth after a brief front run.
Keep It Real Unraced At Two
Keep It Real was attempting to join just two colts unraced at age two who have won the North America Cup. Straight Path took the Cup honors as an inexperienced sophomore in 1998 and Tell All did the same in 2007.
Steve Condren told post race interviewers he didn't believe his colt could have caught Well Said as the race unfolded, but he admitted that placing Keep It Real at the front initially may not have been the best choice. "...I might have cost him (Keep It Real) second money," Condren said.
As it was, Well Said set a Canadian standard for three-year-old pacers. The previous fastest stakes record was set in 2002 by Red River Hanover in 1:48.4 at Woodbine's track, where the NA Cup was held for thirteen seasons.
Blissed Out was the last pacer to go in 1:48.4 at Mohawk.
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