Charley Barley now commands respect
Campbellville, ON --- He wasn't given much respect by the bettors in his C$40,000 Metro Pace Elimination last weekend at Mohawk Racetrack, but based upon his performance Charley Barley has thrust himself into the mix for this Saturday's C$1 million final of the stakes for 2-year-olds.
Having been paired with driver David Miller and starting from post position four didn't seem to help the Western Hanover colt in the eyes of the punters, who sent the bay off at 73-1 in his elimination.
Miller was able to work out a two hole trip with the John Ezzo and Lisa Adkins owned bay, and the colt responded by eventually finishing third, was individually timed in 1:52, and was only beaten by one and one-quarter lengths by the post time favorite, Mr Apples, who was well in hand when he won in 1:514.
Although if things go the way trainer Jim Arledge, Jr. hopes they do in the final, which will start at 9:40 p.m. (EDT), Charley Barley may be in the right place at the right time, and could make his backers very happy.
"Before his Metro Elim he hadn't raced in three weeks," Arledge said about Charley Barley, the second foal out of the Abercrombie mare Last Night. "I was expecting a good performance out of him, in the range of a (1):52 or (1):53 mile. He went in :52 and I was really pleased with him, especially after leaving quicker than he ever has before."
The Metro will be seen live, coast-to-coast in Canada on the Score Television Network, starting at 9 p.m. (EDT).
"He's tight now heading into the final and the draw couldn't have worked out any better for him. We have the two elim winners (Mr Apples and Artzina) to the inside of us, so if they start mixing it up with each over on the front we can be right there to pick up the pieces. A second-over trip with him would be great."
Even though Charley Barley has only made four starts this year and sports a record of one win, two seconds, one third place finish, and has won $24,498, Arledge insists that it has been by design to have him peak for races such as the Metro.
"He trained down well the whole time we've had him," Arledge said about the colt, who was a $47,000 yearling purchase from the 2005 Lexington Select sale. "We sort of aimed him at the bigger races and tried too stay away from getting him into too many of the sire stakes early." Here’s the field:
The Metro Pace Final – Purse C$1 million
PP - Horse - Driver – Trainer
1 - Funny Bones - L. Ouellette - B. Teague
2 - Mr Apples - R. Pierce - B. Teague
3 - Artzina - J. Campbell - D. Davis
4 - Charley Barley - G. Brennan - J. Arledge, Jr.
5 - Just Plug It In - B. Sears - R. McIntosh
6 - Honky Tonk Hanover - J. Moiseyev - R. Norman
7 - Laughing Art - Ma. MacDonald - W. Elliott
8 - Yankee Skyscaper - J. Jamieson - C. Ryder
9 – Pandora’s Sox - D. Miller - J. Poliseno
10 - Running Book - S. Condren - W. Elliott
AE1 - Shipps Camotion - M. Baillargeon - J. Kopas |
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