Boom! $92 Red Mile Bomb; Trio Of Double Digit Bluegrass Scores

Thursday, Sept. 26

Grand Circuit week began at The Red Mile with the first of a string of two-year-old Bluegrass Stakes (BG).

In the three frosh-colt trots we had a single winner, Amigo Volo ($14.40, $6.40, $3.80). We finished fourth with the other two, Hobbs (14-1) and Synergy (9-1). Both BG splits were won by 8-1 shots.

Friday, Sept. 27

In two frosh-filly pacing BGs, we won with Marloe Hanover ($12.40, $6.80, $4.20) and finished third with Gai Waterhouse ($2.10).

Frosh-filly trotters battled in BG splits. We won with Common Sense S ($12.20, $10.00, $2.10). Make note that Common Sense S was listed racing at Freehold on the H2W list per an editor’s error. Sweet Shirley Mae (11-1), who finished fourth in that race, was listed in the features for the pick in this race.

We finished second in another with Madame Sherry ($3.00, $2.10). Beaten by the race favorite we completed the $4.40 exacta.

Then, we were off the board with Cover Girl (12-1) and Kikamora (21-1) in the other two BGs.

At Dayton, the crowd agreed with us, making Mission Accepted the favorite in the trot derby, but he gave way to the second choice and was beaten by two more to finish fourth.

Also made the favorite was Western Fame ($2.60), who finished third in the pace derby.

Saturday, Sept. 28

More Red Mile/Grand Circuit BG action ensued. Two-year-old colt pacers lined up in four races on the program. We delivered 50 percent of the winners.

Two colts we have been following through the season that we touted in the BGs here took top spots: Cattlewash ($7.40, $3.80, $2.60) and Roll With Jr ($10.00, $3.80, $3.00).

In another we were third with Catch The Fire ($2.10), who went off the favorite, losing to the crowd’s second choice, and Captain Groovy (13-1), who finished fourth in a split won by a 6-1 shot.

There was also a single BG for soph-filly pacers where we wound up sixth with Zero Tolerance (9-2).

BREEDERS CROWN COUNTDOWN

With a little more than a month left before connections must make the big decisions about entering their freshmen into the Breeders Crown (BC), some Keystone Classic events at the Meadows featured eligible colt-and-filly pacers.

Eligible-colt Patriot Nation was our choice. He turned into the favorite but finished fourth to another eligible that went off 9-1. That winner was the colt we said had to beat, but we never imagined it going off at such high odds, no less that our choice would be the crowd’s choice.

The favorite, not a BC eligible, won the second colt split. We finished third with Lyons Music, another non-eligible.

Three BGs for the fillies brought us one winner, Drama Act ($4.20, $2.40, $2.10).

Another race, won by a 6-1 shot had our choice, Coral Reef Hanover (eligible) finish fourth at 7-1 and our exotic hopeful, Sweet Camille (eligible) finish directly behind our first choice at 14-1.

In BG round three we finished sixth with Don’t Speak (12-1), beaten by the crowd’s third choice in the wagering.


H2W LIST RESULTS

The H2W results list across-the-board prices. Also, exactas listed are included when a H2W horse finishes second with a race favorite or the first two finishers making up the exacta are H2W horses (an asterisk appears when both horses were listed to complete a cold exacta). The note “ok” determines that prices published are correct even when a show price exceeds a place price or any or all of the prices are the same. This week, there were 39 active horses (a 10-percent win hit rate and a 28-percent ATB [across-the-board] hit rate).

Please note that some H2W results reflect win, place, show and exotic results occurring by press time but some horses race after the blog is posted (we list them the following weeks) It is up to you to follow horses that have not performed before this weekly review.


Winners

Billie Claire, $92.40, $23.00, $10.40, Red Mile
Like Clockwork, $4.20, $2.80, $2.10, Meadows
Wink N Nod, $3.80, $2.10, $2.10 ok, Monticello
DWs Ny Yank, $3.60, $2.40, $2.40 ok, Philly

Seconds

Midnite Craze, $5.00, $4.00, Plainridge
With Out A Doubt, $2.20, $2.10 (Exacta $4.90), Yonkers

Thirds

Jetomatt, $5.40, Northfield
Infiniti AS, $3.60, Dayton
Tipp City, $3.30, Yonkers
JK Pearls Delight, $2.10, Monticello
Leap Year Lucky, $2.10, Saratoga


News & Notes

As the Breeders Crown looms over the season, The Meadowlands holds qualifying races on Thursday, Oct. 3 at 10 a.m. The Meadowlands autumn season will hold some of the only post-“Crown” stakes left for the season during its run from Friday, Oct. 11 when it presents the fourth leg of the Kindergarten Series. Kindergartens race legs each Friday for the subsequent weeks leading up to the finals on Saturday, Nov. 2.

Speaking of the Crown, Bold Eagle, winner of 45 of 66 starts, with 20 Group 1 trotting victories and two titles in the Prix d'Amerique, and who has earned more than $7 million through his career, makes his North American debut in the Crown at Woodbine Mohawk Park next month. His regular driver, Björn Goop, won’t be coming stateside. Brian Sears will drive bold Eagle.

One of our winning choices in a feature this week was Amigo Volo. Making his first appearance with an entry in Grand Circuit company was trainer Carter Pinske. Amigo Volo, driven by Dexter Dunn, blasted to the top entering the stretch to win, setting a world record 1:52.3 victory for a frosh-colt trotter. Amigo Volo is a son of Father Patrick. He has hit the board five of seven times (three wins, two seconds) and made over $168,000. Pinske is a member of the sport’s popular Midwest harness family once led by the ill-fated horseman Brian Pinske.

Woodbine Entertainment announced details for the inaugural Mohawk Million, a race for two-year-old trotters with a $1-million purse that makes it it the richest harness race in Canada. Scheduled for late September or early October in 2020 at Woodbine Mohawk Park, the Mohawk Million follows a buy-in formula with nine of 10 slots in the race available for purchase. The 10th and final spot will be given to the connections of the 2020 William Wellwood Memorial winner at no cost.


Extraordinary Extras

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