Jul 3, 2019 | General News
June 29 to July 5, 2019
Expectations are a funny thing. They can put you in a mindset where you can only see a few possible outcomes for some upcoming event, when, in actuality, life has a funny way of showing us that anything can happen at any time. That is certainly true in the world of high-stakes harness racing, where unpredictability is built into the sport because of the dependence on animals to repeat performances week after week against other top-notch competitors all trying to do the same thing.
After watching the eliminations for the 2019 edition of Sun Stakes Saturday at The Downs at Mohegan Sun Pocono, I thought I had a pretty good feel for what would transpire. But I can’t say that any of the four Finals this past Saturday worked out anything like what I would have expected, other than the fact that they were all as exciting as could be predicted. I clearly wasn’t alone in my confusion, as none of the four races was won by a favorite, and the odds for the winners got progressively longer as the night went on.
Let’s take a look back at what transpired and try to pick apart how the unexpected became commonplace on this star-studded night of racing.
THE JAMES M. LYNCH MEMORIAL PACE FOR THREE-YEAR-OLD PACING FILLIES:
What We Expected To Happen: A showdown between Treacherous Reign and Warrawee Ubeaut, two fillies who have been going back and forth at each other in a battle for divisional supremacy.
What Actually Happened: Well, in this case, we weren’t all that far off, because there was indeed a showdown between Warrawee Ubeaut and Treacherous Reign, the top two choices in the race. But that showdown occurred too early and for too long a chunk of the mile, leaving both a bit weary in the lane. That left the 3-1 third choice Stonebridge Soul in perfect position in the pocket. Driver Tim Tetrick guided the Chris Ryder trainee up the passing lane for the victory by three-quarters of a length in 1:49:3, providing the first indication that the pocket was going to be the place to be on this night.
THE MAX C. HEMPT MEMORIAL PACE FOR THREE-YEAR-OLD PACERS
What We Expected To Happen: Proof, with a much better post position than the other two elimination winners, would build on his outstanding career-best mile in the eliminations and dominate.
What Actually Happened: Proof did indeed go off with 1-5 expectations, but wasn’t on his game after starting slow, eventually finishing sixth. Meanwhile, Captain Victorious tried to double on his elim win with another gutsy front-pacing effort. But he couldn’t shake Shake That House, trained by Chris Oakes, who has a shelf full of huge stakes victories at Pocono. From the pocket, Shake That House, with Brian Sears in the bike, erupted late for a two-length win in a career-best 1:49:2, paying off handsomely for his backers with 8-1 odds.
THE BEN FRANKLIN PACE FOR FREE-FOR-ALL PACERS
What We Expected To Happen: A three-way donnybrook between Western Fame, McWicked, and Lather Up that would produce a definitive aged pacing group standout.
What Actually Happened: Lather Up continued to be haunted by clunkers during the biggest nights at Pocono, starting slowly and eventually breaking stride. McWicked battled first over but could never get even with the leader. Western Fame, who went off as the favorite, set that pace, but was pressured enough by McWicked that he labored in the lane. Which left This Is The Plan, winless in 2019 coming into the race, ready for his closeup. The Ron Burke trainee came flying from the pocket with Yannick Gingras driving to win at 12-1 in 1:48:2.
THE EARL BEAL JR. MEMORIAL TROT
What We Expected To Happen: A coronation for Greenshoe, the colt who many thought could only lose if he broke stride (and even then, many wondered if it would matter.)
What Actually Happened: Trainer/driver Ake Svanstedt didn’t get the memo apparently, because he fired out from an outside post with 55-1 shot Marseille as if the outcome was still up in the air. Greenshoe, meanwhile, got away a bit lethargically, in much the same manner as he did in the elimination. The difference on this night was that he was beaten to the punch in the outer flow, meaning that he couldn’t glide up to his liking. Once he finally did shake free, it was too late to catch the well-rated Marseille, the stunning winner in 1:52:3.
That will do it for this week at Pocono, but we’ll see you at the track. Feel free to e-mail me at [email protected].
May 22, 2018 | Racing
May 19-22, 2018
It was one of those weeks at The Downs at Mohegan Sun Pocono where, even though there were some outstanding overnight racing performances (we’re looking at you, Tyson and Pa’s Corn Squeezin), the stakes races took center stage. Some of the harness racing world’s biggest stars as 2-year-olds a year ago came out to play in Pennsylvania Sire Stakes Competition. There were also two more thrillers held on Saturday night in the Great Northeast Open pacing series. We’ll return to the Weekly Awards next week, but, for now, let’s throw the spotlight on the stakes and series action this past week.
PENNSYLVANIA SIRE STAKES THREE-YEAR-OLD COLTS AND GELDINGS PACERS (SATURDAY)
Three divisions of the Sire Stakes for sophomore male pacers were held on Saturday night, and, in the three races, not one favorite was able to get home a winner. In the first split, George Napolitano Jr. sent I’m A Big Deal on a mission of speed, and the rest of the field languished in the wake of the Chris Ryder trainee, who came home a winner in a career-best 1:50.2 by a stunning 6 ½ lengths. Meanwhile Dorsoduro Hanover, guided by Matt Kakaley in his first night back from injury for trainer Ron Burke, moved to two-for-two in Sire Stakes action with a pocket trip rally for a win in a career-best 1:50.2.
All eyes were on the final Sire Stakes split of the night, which featured 2017 Breeders Crown champ Stay Hungry and Lost In Time, who knocked off Stay Hungry in their final showdown of their freshmen seasons. Both were making their initial starts of the season on Saturday night. Stay Hungry set the pace and Lost In Time came bounding up late on the outside. But it was Wes Delight, who had the benefit of three starts already this year to find his form, who rallied from the pocket to win in 1:50.4. Corey Callahan did the driving for trainer Mark Harder.
GREAT NORTHEAST OPEN PACERS (SATURDAY)
In the first $30,000 split held on Saturday night, Rockeyed Optimist was made the favorite based on his win in the series at Harrah’s the previous week. That talented gelding came charging first-over at pacesetter Rockin Ron, who had made the lead for the Matt Kakaley/Ron Burke combo despite a tough outside post. Nonetheless it was Rockin Ron who withstood the pressure, holding on for the victory by a neck in 1:50.2, giving him two consecutive wins at Pocono in the Great Northeast series.
Later on that night, it was another case of George Napolitano Jr. cutting loose a horse on the front end and daring everyone else to play catch-up. In this case it was Mach It So, the eight-year-old star of the Jeffrey Bamond Jr. barn. Mach It So set blistering fractions that left the rest of the field, including 6-5 favorite Dr J Hanover a little stunned. The lead was too much for anyone to overcome, although Bettor’s Edge rallied to within a half-length in second at the line. The proof of Mach It So’s effort was in the timer, as his winning mark of 1:49 was the fastest posted in the 2018 meet to date at Pocono.
PENNSYLVANIA SIRE STAKES THREE-YEAR-OLD FILLIES TROTTERS (MONDAY)
The sophomore distaff trotters took center stage on Monday night, and there were some outstanding performances by both chalk and longshots alike. In the first split, 1-5 favorite Nixie Volo didn’t have the easiest trip, getting parked around two turns of the mile. But the steady hand of driver Corey Callahan guided Nixie Volo, trained by John Butenschoen, to the win by a solid 1 ¾ lengths in 1:54.3. The upset came in the night’s final split, when a speed duel between Vivacious Allie and 3-5 favorite Lily Stride set the race up for a closer. 15-1 shot Piranha Fury, with David Miller driving for trainer Nifty Norman, filled that bill, coming out of the clouds for the win in a career-best 1:54.2.
Although those two races were exciting, it was the most textbook Sire Stakes race of the night that was actually the most noteworthy. That’s because it included Manchego, the superstar who won all twelve races as a two-year-old for the Jimmy Takter barn, capping it off with a Breeders Crown title. Returning to her Pennsylvania stomping grounds for her 2018 debut, she confidently strode to the lead on the front stretch as the 1-9 favorite. She set effortlessly quick fractions without driver Yannick Gingras having to ask for a thing and coasted to the victory without any urging by 1 ½ lengths over Live Laugh Love, who had won her first three starts of the year but didn’t threaten the heavy favorite late. Despite not having raced this year and the seemingly easy journey, Manchego was still more than a second faster than the other winners on the night. Let’s face it: Right now, everybody else in this division not named Manchego is playing for second.
That will do it for this week, but we’ll see you at the track. Feel free to e-mail me at [email protected].
Oct 19, 2017 | Racing
October 14-20, 2017
The weather finally got a little bit chilly in the middle of this past racing week at The Downs at Mohegan Sun Pocono, but not so much that it had a profound effect on the racing conditions. It was still a fast and frenzied four nights of racing at Pocono. As is so often the case, there were many excellent candidates for the Weekly Awards, so read on and see who gets the honors.
PACER OF THE WEEK: DOREL
When a horse steps up its game and pulls off a performance that is much better than any other that it had previously managed, it’s easy to assume that said performance was a fluke. Dorel probably had some people thinking that about him as he prepared to take on a non-winners of five pacing group on Sunday night. In his previous race, the three-year-old gelding trained by Chris Ryder tore up a condition claiming group from a #8 post at 10-1, going gate-to-wire for a career-best win in 1:50:4.
The field was tougher on Sunday night, including an impressive sophomore shipper named Daiymir. That colt was the even-money favorite and assumed control of the early lead, but needed a blistering 25:4 opening quarter to get there. Dorel, who went off as a 9-2 third choice from post position #4 in a field of eight, settled for the pocket spot, which turned out to be the right place to be.
On the back stretch, Daiymir started to labor and driver Anthony Napolitano quickly guided Dorel around him and into the lead. For the last quarter mile, the gelding dug deep and had to endure a late-closing threat from Crossfirehurricane. He held tight to win by three parts of a length in 1:52:4. One great win could be a fluke, but two excellent performances in a row is starting to look like a trend for this rising star.
Other top pacers this week include: Regalanthropist (Matt Kakaley, Bruce Clarke), who switched barns and moved up in class but still managed a victory in a claiming handicap on Saturday night in 1:51:4; About The Benjamins (Matt Kakaley, Daniel Renaud), who captured his third consecutive win against the $7,500 claimers on Monday night, with this one coming in 1:55; and When Sharks Fly (Jim Marshall III, Donna Marshall), a mare who moved up the condition ladder on Tuesday night and scored her second straight win, this time in the distaff feature in 1:51:4.
TROTTER OF THE WEEK: SOUTHWIND WARSAW
Anytime a horse reaches double figures in the win totals in a calendar year, it’s an impressive accomplishment. Southwind Warsaw, an eight-year-old gelding trained by Lou Pena, stood on the precipice of that achievement when he faced off against a $10,000 to $12,500 claiming handicap field to start off the racing action on Monday afternoon.
In an eight-horse field, Southwind Warsaw left from post position #6 as a 1-9 favorite. The heavy betting attention was understandable, as the gelding was coming off a 3 ½ length win the previous week in the same class in front-trotting fashion. Once again driver Anthony Napolitano was aggressive with the favorite, sending him to the front end early in the mile. From that point it was just a matter of keeping the fractions under control while not allowing any pressure to rankle his horse.
Napolitano handled that task expertly, and Southwind Warsaw did the rest, lengthening the lead steadily until no one else was in the picture. He coasted home effortlessly 6 ½ lengths in front in 1:54:1. Not only was that his second straight victory, but it was put him at the ten-win marker for the season with a couple months to spare. Who knows? If he stays in this kind of groove and keeps after it into the winter months, he might threaten 15 wins for the year.
Honorable mention on the trotting side goes to: Skates N Plates (Anthony Napolitano, Andrew Harris), whose condition victory on Saturday night came in 1:53, the fastest trotting time posted this past week at Pocono; Checkmate Time (Donald Dupont, Marie Dupont), who followed up a win at Harrah’s win with a victory on Sunday night at Pocono in 1:56; and Up Front Billy (George Napolitano Jr., Mark Ford), who returned from Harrah’s for a condition victory on Saturday night in 1:54:2.
LONG SHOT OF THE WEEK: DECISION DAY
This 2-year-old pacer’s maiden win on Sunday night is not one either he or his backers will forget, as he rallied with Eric Carlson in the bike to win at 60-1, paying off $124.40 to win on a $2 ticket.
DRIVER OF THE WEEK: MATT KAKALEY
Kakaley amassed double figures in the win column this past week and, on both Monday and Tuesday, ripped off three wins in a row at one point on the program.
TRAINER OF THE WEEK: ROB HARMON
Harmon wasted no time making an impact at Pocono on Sunday night, as he scored training victories in two of the evening’s first three races.
That will do it for this week, but we’ll see you at the track. Feel free to e-mail me at [email protected].
Aug 3, 2016 | Racing
July 30-August 5, 2016
After several weeks of hot, dry weather, Mother Nature brought some rain to the party in Northeastern Pennsylvania this past week. That created sloppy tracks on two of the four racing nights at The Downs at Mohegan Sun Pocono, making for some fascinatingly unpredictable racing. In the midst of the on-and-off precipitation, several horses and horsemen handled the less-than-ideal conditions with aplomb, and they’re the ones receiving the Weekly Awards.
PACER OF THE WEEK: PANCETTA
Whenever you see that a Standardbred has some sort of variation of the word “pan” in its name, it’s a good bet that the Peter Pan Stables of Ohio were involved in its development. While the names can be quite humorous, the horses with them often are outstanding competitors. Such has proven to be the case with Pancetta, a seven-year-old stallion bred by Peter Pan Stables who has been a handful since arriving at Pocono a few weeks back.
Trained by Matias Ruiz, Pancetta had been splitting time between Harrah’s at Philadelphia and Yonkers before coming to Pocono, with very little success. As a matter of fact, he didn’t even hit the board through his first seven races of the season. But he quickly proved that he loved the Pocono surface, ripping off a victory on July 23 in a $6,000 condition event in a career-best 1:52:1.
On Saturday he had to overcome the double whammy of moving up in class to the $12,500 level and dealing with the far outside #9 post position. Going off at 8-1, Pancetta was undaunted. Driver Anthony Napolitano hustled him to the lead on the front stretch and he held the advantage from that point. Even with the race favorite Rather Swell bearing down him late, the stallion held together for the victory by a length in 1:52:1 in the slop. That makes two straight victories, meaning that the name might be clever, but it’s Pancetta’s game that has really stood out of late.
Other top pacers this week include: Dancin Yankee (George Napolitano Jr., Josh Green), who overcame sloppy conditions on Saturday night to beat a condition field in 1:49:1, the fastest pacing time of the week at Pocono; Check’s Commodore (Anthony Napolitano, Rene Allard), who picked up his second straight win over the $15,000 claimers on Saturday night, this one coming in 1:52:2 in the slop; and Lindy’s Nightmare (Brett Miller, Frank Antonacci), a three-year-old filly who returned from Mohawk to win a condition on Tuesday night in 1:52:4, giving her five consecutive victories.
TROTTER OF THE WEEK: STONEBRIDGE COMBAT
When humans fail at something, they’re often told to get back on the horse. When horses fail at something, what do they do? While you ponder that existential query, consider the case of Stonebridge Combat, a 3-year-old gelding trained and driven by Chris Ryder who hadn’t known a lot of defeat until a third-place finish on July 24 against the non-winners of five trotters at Pocono. Prior to that he had won three races in a row and five out of six for the year, which was his first in racing after sitting out his 2-year-old campaign.
In that loss in his previous race, Stonebridge Combat set the pace as he had in many of his previous wins, only to cough up the lead late. When he faced the non-winners of five again on Sunday night, Ryder decided to change up the strategy. He allowed Mr Lucky Luke to set the pace early while holding his horse back in the middle of the back. It was only on the back stretch that he set Stonebridge Combat in motion.
Even though he didn’t find any cover to help him toward the front of the pack, Stonebridge Combat pulled up alongside Mr Lucky Luke in the stretch, finally wearing him down to prevail by three-quarters of a length in 1:55:2. It was quite a nice bounce-back performance for the gelding, who has now won six of eight races in his young career.
Honorable mention on the trotting side goes to: Can’t I (John Campbell, Bob Stewart), a 2-year-old who now has two straight wins to start his career after a condition win in the slop on Monday night in a career-best 1:57:3; Three Crow Mo (Matt Kakaley, Tony Farina), who scored his second straight victory over the $7,500 claimers on Monday night, winning in 1:57:3 in the slop; and Croquet Rose (Andrew McCarthy, Anette Lorentzon), a mare who overcame an outside post to pick up her second consecutive condition win on Tuesday night, this one coming in a career-best 1:55:3.
LONG SHOT OF THE WEEK: SAVANNAH SUNSET
In Sunday night’s final race, this trotting filly won a condition at 46-1 to pay off $95.40 to win and completed a $2,445 Late Daily Double where both winners were driven by Marcus Miller.
DRIVER OF THE WEEK: ERIC GOODELL
We’re seeing much more of Goodell at Pocono than we have in several years, and we’re seeing him win a lot of races as well, as he picked up driving doubles on Saturday and Sunday.
TRAINER OF THE WEEK: GILBERTO GARCIA-HERRERA
Garcia-Herrera has been a steady performer all year long at Pocono, and he kept it up this week with three training wins including a double on Monday night.
That will do it for this week, but we’ll see you at the track. Feel free to e-mail me at [email protected].
Jul 28, 2016 | Racing
July 23-29, 2016
It was hot this week in Northeastern Pennsylvania, but that’s no real news flash, because it was hot just about everywhere in the country as well. I only mention it because the heat didn’t seem to cause any lethargy in the horses competing this past week at The Downs at Mohegan Sun Pocono. If anything, we witnessed some of the fastest races at the track in several weeks, with horses routinely putting up career-bests and even coming within shouting distance of world records. Here are some of the best performers this week, via the Weekly Awards.
PACER OF THE WEEK: VAGUE TRACES
You never know when you’re going to see a special performance at the track. Vague Traces gave just such a performance on Saturday night. It wasn’t entirely unexpected that this 4-year-old gelding would be good, considering that he went off as the favorite in a field of $14,000 condition pacers. But the extent to which he excelled was what left mouths agape after he cashed in on his promise and scored the victory.
Trained by Ross Croghan, Vague Traces was making his first start at Pocono in 2016. He came in with wins in just two of his 14 races on the year, but they were back-to-back wins at The Meadowlands in June. Coming off a pair of distant finishes against tough company at Yonkers, the gelding didn’t show much in the first half of his first mile at Pocono, sitting an unassuming fourth early. Then driver Andrew McCarthy sent him first-over on the outside, and everything changed.
In a flash Vague Traces blew by everyone in front of him and took the lead prior to the three-quarter pole. But he didn’t stop there, continuing an elongated speed burst that didn’t relent until he crossed the line 7 ¾ lengths ahead of the dumbfounded field. Even more impressively, he tripped the line in 1:48:1, not just a career-best but the fastest at Pocono this week and one of the fastest at the oval this season. Just like that Vague Traces made an impression on the Pocono faithful; let’s see how he handles the tougher competition that’s bound to come.
Other top pacers this week include: Bushwacker (George Napolitano Jr., Chris Ryder), who scored a victory in Saturday night’s $18,000 featured pace in 1:50; Soto (Andrew McCarthy, Eric Ell), a newcomer to the racing wars at Pocono who immediately left his mark with a condition victory on Saturday in a career-best 1:48:4; and Life Is A Beach (Anthony Napolitano, Randy Bendis), who handled Tuesday night’s featured condition pacing mares in 1:52, which matched a career best.
TROTTER OF THE WEEK: ARMOR HANOVER
There were several excellent candidates for this honor this week, but this seven-year-old gelding gets the call not just for his last two outstanding performances, but also for how far he’s come in that time. Trained by Douglas Berkeley, Armor Hanover hit rock bottom on July 2 when he went off-stride for a second consecutive race. That meant he’d have to qualify before he could race again. He did just that, winning a qualifier at Monticello on July 6, apparently earning some serious confidence in the process.
In his first race back on July 16, he headed out against a $14,000 condition trotting field as a 17-1 long shot. But driver Tom Jackson drove him aggressively and Armor Hanover responded, holding off Auspicious Hanover by a nose in a thrilling stretch battle to upset in 1:54:3, which was a career-best time.
On Saturday night, he faced off against a $15,500 condition grouping and this time went off at 6-1 with Anthony Napolitano in the bike. With a tremendous back-stretch brush, Armor Hanover left behind the 2-5 favorite Cufflink Hanover. The rest of the field was no match for him either, as he came home six lengths in front. His winning time of 1:52 shattered the career mark he had only just laid down. Armor Hanover has indeed come a long way in a short time, and it will be exciting to see now just where he goes from here.
Honorable mention on the trotting side goes to: Tac’s Delight (Jim Marohn Jr., Rene Allard), who handled a $15,000 claiming handicap field in 1:54:1 on Sunday night for his third straight victory; Homicide Hunter (Eric Goodell, Chris Oakes), who captured Sunday night’s $25,000 featured condition pace in 1:51:1, a new career-best, the fastest trotting time of the week at Pocono, and only a fifth of a second short of a world record for 4-year-old trotting geldings; and Crazy About Pat (Jim Marohn Jr., Paul Kelley), who shipped in from Yonkers to pick up a condition win on Sunday night in a career-best 1:53:1.
LONG SHOT OF THE WEEK: LARSON HANOVER
This two-year-old trotter’s maiden win on Tuesday night was quite memorable, as he came home a winner at 75-1 to pay out $154.20 on a $2 win ticket.
DRIVER OF THE WEEK: ANTHONY NAPOLITANO
Returning from an injury that kept him out nearly two months, Napolitano wasted no time getting in the swing of things by ripping off five wins on his first night back Saturday.
TRAINER OF THE WEEK: JENNY MELANDER
Melander put together an interesting streak this week at Pocono, as she followed up training wins in both halves of the Late Daily Double Monday night with another victory in the opening race on Tuesday.
That will do it for this week, but we’ll see you at the track. Feel free to e-mail me at [email protected].
