Belhaven Stables’ Double Time turned heads after upstaging favourites War Machine and Special Gold during the last round of harness racing at the National Equestrian Centre.

With driver and trainer Candyce Martins at the helm, the ten-year-old mare won the opening heat in the Free For All division from the rail in a time of 1min 3.6sec, with Lee and Sergio Raynor’s stallion Special Gold and Mello Family’s gelding War Machine trailing behind in her wake.

“The race went smoothly, she is running nice,” Martins told The Royal Gazette.

The experienced driver is inspired by the horse’s form heading into the traditional Boxing Day and New Year’s Day races at the Devonshire facility.

“It is encouraging going into the holiday races,” Martins added. “I look forward to the rest of the season with her.”

Mello Family’s War Machine and driver Darico Clarke won the remaining Free For All heat with the fastest time of 1:02/3 posted during last Friday night’s racecard.

The time was one fifth of a second shy of the season’s fastest, which the gelding and Clarke achieved earlier this month.

The overall track record of 1:01/1 is held by Tyler Lopes’s retired mare, Google Me.

Belhaven Stables also enjoyed success in the Junior Free For All division as their eight-year-old gelding Gold N Glory and driver Martins won both heats to achieve an impressive sweep.

“Gold N Glory was good as well and I hope that will keep improving each week,” Martins said.

The night’s closest race unfolded in the opening heat in the slower 1:04/3-:05/3 division where Burrows Family’s Shady Maple pipped Belhaven Stables’ Inwood’s Progress by a nose after the rival mares both hit the line in 1:06/4.

“Andrea Westerfield drove her [Shady Maple] for the first time and is getting a feel for her,” owner David Burrows Jr said.