Record On The Line In Upcoming WDC Leg

Published: August 1, 2011 02:56 pm EDT

Monticello Raceway, like the other tracks that are hosting a leg of the World Driving Championship, will have four races for the 10 world class competitors, but unlike the others, a possible world record is on the line in one of the Mighty M’s contests

.

The third race on the Wednesday card (third leg of the WDC) is at a distance race at 1-3/4 miles and the current world record of 3:40, set by Pembroke Prayer and Mike Micallef back in December 2009, could quite possibly fall especially with the talent of the reinsmen sitting in the sulkies in the World Driving Championship.

Favoured in that contest is the Joe Peruso-trained Smooth Muscles, who will be driven by Denmark’s Birger Jorgensen. Jorgenson has over 7,000 career driving victories and has won 24 national titles in his homeland. He comes into the World Driving Championship as the defending title holder after having won the prestigious event in 2009 in Norway.

Other races on the card that are part of the tourney are Races 2, 5 and 6. In the second race, trainer Billy Devine has drawn Juan Riera-Rossello to drive his Scoot For Glory, who comes into this one-mile contest off six consecutive victories at the Mighty M. Rossello has dominated the driving colony in Spain where races are held on the island of Mallorca. He has won over 2,800 races and twice was the European Champion; initially in 1995 and then again in 2005.

In the fifth race, a one mile trot, Sweden’s Bjorn Goop has drawn the early line favourite in the Mike Spano-trained Four Starz Ranson. Goop a winner of over 3,400 races is the son of legendary horseman Ollie Goop and in 2006 Bjorn Goop set a single season Scandinavian record by winning 500 races.

The final WDC event at Monticello, Race 6 on the 13-race card, will have the USA’s Cory Callahan behind the early favourite, the Bill Kapinos-trained Mattnipulator, in that one-mile pacing contest. Callahan, a winner of over 2,050 races in just six years of competitive driving, was a last minute substitute for Jason Bartlett, who was injured in an automobile accident just weeks prior to the WDC. But Callahan has already made a good showing the first leg, which was contested at Harrah’s Chester Downs on Sunday where he won one of the four races and currently is in fourth place with 29 points.

Canada's Jody Jamieson will drive Savvy Hawk (PP8, 7-2), Danger Hall (PP10, 6-1), Poetry Affair (PP2, 5-1) and Nutmegs Taxi (PP10, 6-1) in the third leg of the contest.

After the Monticello Raceway leg the WDC moves on to the Meadowlands on Thursday, August 4 and culminates in a final competition at Yonkers Raceway on Friday, August 5. The Monticello Raceway leg on Wednesday will get underway at 12:50 p.m., but 20 minutes prior, the drivers –- with their country’s flags -- will be driven from the paddock and paraded around the racetrack in classic and antique automobiles and then brought to the winner's circle for introductions by WDC emcee, John Pawlak.

Jamieson currently leads the way in the point standings entering the second leg, to be held this evening at Tioga Downs. Tioga's first-race post time on Monday is 6 p.m.

The 25th World Driving Championship
Rank - Driver (Country) - Points
1 - Jody Jamieson (Canada) - 40
2 - Juan Antonia Riera-Rossello (Spain) - 30
3 - Dexter Dunn (New Zealand) - 30
4 - Corey Callahan (USA) - 29
5 - Bjorn Goop (Sweden) - 26
6 - Enrico Bellei (Italy) - 25
7 - Franck Nivard (France) - 24
8 - Michael Nimczyk (Germany) - 20
9 - Chris Lewis (Australia) - 20
10 - Birger Jorgensen (Denmark) - 20

(With files from Monticello)

Tags
Have something to say about this? Log in or create an account to post a comment.