Carneros looking for sprint series sweep today at Ajax Downs

The Quarter Racing Owners of Ontario’s lucrative Sprint Series concludes this afternoon at Ajax Downs and Carneros is one win away from sweeping the three-race series.

The brown 7-year-old, owned by Burlington’s Milena Kwiecien and trained by Jason Pascoe of Pontypool won the first leg of the series at 110-yards on May 22 and the 220-yard second leg on June 29.

Wednesday’s final leg is at 250-yards and, like the other races in the series, offers a purse of $20,000. Horses earn points on a 7-5-4-3 scale for finishing in the top four placings and Carneros currently leads with 14 points over Steve Hunter’s Zoxtobeyou, who has nine points.

Carneros won the 2020 Sprint Series and he is a 14-time career winner in 43 races. Brian Bell is his regular rider and the pair will break from post position one. Zoxtobeyou, an Ontario bred, has been second and third behind Carneros and last week was fourth in an allowance race behind champion Had to Be Ivory.

While Carneros has defeated most of his rivals in the seven-horse field, which goes as race 8 on Wednesday, one horse he has not met is the red-hot Bodhi, owned by Michelle and Daniel Lucas of Maryland. The couple sent their 4-year-old gelding to Ajax Downs and trainer Craig Spada for 2022 and the horse has won all three starts with relative ease. Helen Vanek rides.

First race post time on Wednesday is 1:30 p.m. and the card of racing includes the popular Pick 5 wager and two Pick 4 wagers.

Keep up to date on news and entries for Ajax Downs on social media and at www.ajaxdowns.com. To find out more about how you can own a Quarter Horse or join a syndicate, contact the Quarter Racing Owners of Ontario at www.qrooi.com.

With files from Jennifer Morrison