Former Hastings Park trainer BRIAN PHILLIPS pulled off a major upset this week with a huge longshot, triggering some very lucrative $3 Pick 3 payoffs. Jockeys Rachaad Knights and Kerron Khelawan scored hat tricks, and trainers Steve Keplin Jr. and Jerry Gourneau kept rolling at the top of the standings.
Phillips, who originally started out with horses at Assiniboia Downs working for John Cizik in 1972, only brought one horse with him from Hastings Park, but Nu Soup for Baby ($79.30) proved plenty good enough when he dueled two rivals into submission in the third race on Wednesday night, opened up into the stretch and held on to win by 1 ¼-lengths under Kerron Khelawan. It was the fourth career win for the five-year-old son of Numaany.
That made it a hat trick on the week for Khelawan, who also won on Sherlynn Go Go ($5.00) for trainer Wendy Anderson, and Really Ralis ($2.50), for another former Hastings Park trainer, Cindy Krasner, on Tuesday.
Nu Soup for Baby’s longshot win resulted in three big $3 Pick 3 payoffs of $2,285.10 in the third race, $905.55 in the fourth race, and $1,479.45 in the fifth race. The $3 Pick 3 was thought of as a novelty by some punters when it first came to be this year, but it has quickly proven itself to be one of the best bets in North America. One longshot or three medium-priced horses in the three-race sequence can quickly send the payoffs skyward.
Jockey Rachaad Knights started to get rolling with a hat trick of his own this week, winning aboard Dreamin Out Loud ($11.70) for trainer Judy Hunter on Tuesday, and following up Wednesday with wins aboard Northvale Road ($4.60) for trainer Jerry Gourneau, and Jacks Spring Break ($4.70) for trainer Steve Keplin, Jr.
Keplin also won with Judo ($12.00) on Tuesday to give him two victories on the week and add to his amazing 2026 record of 11-4-3 from 24 starts, good for second in the standings behind only Jerry Gourneau, who actually crossed the finish line first twice this week, but one of his horses was disqualified. Gourneau leads all trainers with a record of 22-18-14 from 91 starts and will be very tough to catch.
Jockey Sven Balroop (12 wins) was aboard Judo for his win, and that victory allowed him to maintain a one-win lead over Antonio Whitehall (11) in the standings, followed by Javaniel Patterson (10), and a logjam in fourth between Shavon Townsend, Tyrone Nelson, Kerron Khelawan, and Rachaad Knights, each with five victories.
More News
