Jun 16, 2015 | Racing
2014 trotting colt champion Pinkman and Jimmy Takter stablemate Uncle Lasse are now perfect in three Pennsylvania Sire Stakes starts this year after capturing their divisions of the $223,617 three-year-old trotting colt third prelim June 13th, Saturday night, at The Downs at Mohegan Sun Pocono. In the third section, Wicker Hanover, the only non-Takterite to win in 10 cuts of this event in 2015, made it two straight wins with a hard-earned nose victory that prevented a Team Takter sweep.
Uncle Lasse was the fastest divisional Sire Stakes winner for the second straight round of prelims, following up on his 1:51.4 win at The Meadows with a 1:52.2 tally Saturday at Pocono. Driver Brett Miller tucked the son of Donato Hanover in fourth, then quarter-moved him to the top, and a 55.4 last half left the rest of the field far in arrears. The brother to 2014 Trotter of the Year Shake It Cerry is owned by Solveig’s Racing Partners.
Pinkman continued to exhibit championship form, as the Explosive Matter gelding went wire-to-wire for Miller/Takter in 1:53. He won by 1¾ lengths over last year’s 2YO Sire Stakes champion Billy Flynn, making his seasonal debut, with Jim Morrill Jr. picking up the drive behind Billy Flynn, whom Miller drove regularly last year. Christina Takter, John & Jim Fielding, Herb Liverman, and Joyce McClelland share ownership of the horse many feel to be the Hambletonian favorite (or is that the male Hambletonian favorite?).
Wicker Hanover took a Sire Stakes cut at The Meadows, and he made a return visit to Victory Lane at Pocono, making a sweeping move off cover to the midstretch lead. But anybody who’s seen the TV show Breaking Bad knows there’s drama afoot whenever Walter White’s around, and indeed that Takter-trained colt, on Wicker’s back most of the way, came flying late to be just nosed out. Wicker Hanover, who gave Explosive Matter two of the three Sires siring credits, equaled his lifetime best of 1:53 with the tight triumph for driver Andrew McCarthy, trainer Noel Daley, and the Christer Haggstrom Racing Stable Inc.
Jun 10, 2015 | Racing
The third preliminary round of the Pennsylvania Sire Stakes for three-year-old colt and gelding trotters will be the headliner at The Downs at Mohegan Sun Pocono on Saturday night, June 13th, with three fields of nine entered in the $223,617 event.
So far this year, “3YO trotting colts in PaSS events” has been almost the same as writing “success for Team Takter,” as the barn of the Hall of Fame won six of the seven sections offered at Harrah’s Philadelphia and The Meadows. The only winner from the “outside world,” Wicker Hanover, has drawn post three in the fourth race first division for driver Andrew McCarthy and trainer Noel Daley. The son of Explosive Matter followed up a second in the first Sires leg with a 1:53 “pocket rocket” triumph, and he may be a major threat to total Takter dominance.
Walter White will carry the hopes of the Takter barn in this division, although he was off the board in the first two legs. But the son of Cantab Hall refamiliarized himself with trotting hopples in a 1:54.3 Meadowlands qualifying win, and could get going here despite post eight. Brett Miller is listed to drive all four of Takter’s entrants throughout the three cuts.
The sixth race second division finds 2014 divisional champion Pinkman looking to run his seasonal tally to 3 for 3, with the altered son of Explosive Matter drawing the midpoint of the starting gate after open-length wins in Sires starts. He will be coupled in the wagering with Whom Shall I Fear, the full brother to Father Patrick, who has drawn post seven.
Making his 2015 seasonal debut in this division is the Cantab Hall colt Billy Flynn, who won all four of his preliminaries and then the Championship in the PA program last year for trainer Staffan Lind. One note of drama – Brett Miller was the regular driver of Billy Flynn last year, and is down on the early sheet to handle him Saturday night. He’ll have to get off somebody …
Miller was behind the Donato Hanover colt Uncle Lasse when that colt exploded to a 1:51.4 win last time out at The Meadows, also making him 2 for 2 in the Sires. The full brother to 2014 Trotter of the Year Shake It Cerry has drawn post seven; starting one notch inside him is the horse who came within a half-length of beating him at The Meadows, Cruzado Dela Noche (Andrew McCarthy), who is trained by … Jimmy Takter’s daughter, Nancy Johannson!
Any number of scenarios could play out in these interesting Sire Stakes matchups Saturday at Pocono, where the first of 14 races is scheduled to go to the track at 6:30 p.m. The night after, Sunday, June 14th, Pocono will host the Stallion Series events for this group.
Sep 2, 2014 | Racing
August 27, 2014
Billy Flynn won his sixth consecutive race to start his career, capturing a division of the Pennsylvania Sire Stakes on Wednesday night at Mohegan Sun at Pocono Downs. There were four divisions of the Sire Stakes held on Wednesday night for 2-year-old trotting colts and geldings with purses ranging from $62,653 to $63,053.
Billy Flynn (Cantab Hall-Zeta Jones), a two-year-old colt trained by Staffan Lind and driven by Brett Miller, took the lead on the first turn of his split and coasted from there to a win in 1:55:4, a new career-best on a track listed in good condition. In addition to the six-for-six start, Billy Flynn has now swept all four preliminary legs of the Pennsylvania Sire Stakes.
Other Sire Stakes winners on Wednesday night: Cruzado Dela Noche (Muscle Massive-Alidade), driven by David Miller and trained by Nancy Johansson, in 1:55:4; Hurrikane Jonny K (Andover Hall-Lavieenrose De Vie), driven by George Napolitano Jr. and trained by John McDermott, in 1:56:2; and Uncle Lasse (Donato Hanover-Solveig), driven by Ron Pierce and trained by Jimmy Takter, in 1:56:4.
