Frosh Fires For $81 Win; Longest Shot In PASS Frosh Quartet At $34; Forecasted Upset Spot On As McWicked Blows Lazarus N Away

 

Just as our weekly preview blog concluded its exclusive freshman-contenders section, the big score of the following blog not only beat the top price of all the frolicking frosh groups of this season but it made the filly paying $81.50 the current sole candidate for TwinSpires Players Horse of the Year (see first story from Aug. 30).

We scored with a few other double-digit prices in features and in the horses-to-watch list (H2W), where 47 percent of our choices finished in the money, parts of exactas and triples.
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Here’s how it all came down:

Thursday, Aug. 30

Of the three Champlain Stakes for filly trotters at Mohawk, the only winner scored more than the biggest share of the $66,000-plus purse, she became the largest paying winner of our weekly preview blog for 2018. Tommi Canu Hearme ($81.50, 30.10, $18.10), was our first choice in the event. We wrote that we had to go against the huge favorite, The Ice Duchess “for price and purpose.” We chose “the one filly by Royalty For Life, Tomi Canu Hearme.” Obviously, it was impossible to predict The Ice Duchess would break and be eliminated as the big public choice, therefore contributing to our success, but that is moot, since we cashed. Tomi Canu Hearme becomes our prime candidate for the 2018 TwinSpires Players Horse of the Year with a win price $20-or-more than our top-paying winners so far this year. She knocks out of contention PH Kenny ($67.60), Onemorewallgohome ($62.00) and Fox Valley Eli $60.60). Our second choice, Grimmie Hanover ($22.90) finished third.

The other two Champlains for the division resulted with one third, Champaign Jane ($3.40), a seventh, Club Belvedere (113-1) and two sixths with Cometpedia (92-1) and Fraulein Blucher (2-1).

Also on Thursday, we were third in all three Kentucky Sires Stakes for sophs at The Red Mile, losing to a pair of public choices and the public’s second choice. Our finishers were Havitalltogether ($3.60), Nixie Volo ($2.20) and Grand Teton ($2.40).


Friday, Aug. 31

The Champlians at Mohawk for frosh-colt trotters were kind to the public choices except for the only choice in which we agreed, Royal Rob, who broke and finished eighth in one division.

We were third with Union Forces ($2.60) and fifth with Forbidden Trade (3-1) in the other two splits.

In a Simcoe Stakes that night for soph-filly trotters, we finished second with Blonde Magic ($2.50, $2.30) to contribute in a $12.00 exacta with the winner, the public’s choice.


Saturday, Sept. 1

Our features-began in the afternoon at the Meadows, where there were four state-champion miles for two-year-old divisions.

Not one favorite won in the quartet of races and we picked up on the longest shot of them all to win the frosh-colt pace with Proof ($34.20, $5.60, $4.00).

In the other three, we finished fifth with Sonnet Grace (4-1), sixth with Fashioned Possessed (24-1) and seventh with Stonebridge Soul (7-1).
 
The big surprise in the Maple Leaf Trot was hardly predictable. Crazy Wow paying 31-1 to defeat the huge talent in this field only goes to show you lots of things can go wrong for the right horses. We were eighth with Will Take Charge (3-1).


Sunday, Sept. 2

The sophomore PASS finals on Sept. 2 at Pocono were chalky but the only dead-on favorite we liked and passed on was Phaetosive ($2.10, $2.10, $2.10). The other choices were miserable against the public choices. We had Sansovina Hanover (50-1) finish last; Donatover (72-1) near last and Macadoodledoo (15-1) off the board mid-pack.


BREEDERS CROWN COUNTDOWN

We were not the only ones to defy Lazarus N in the Canadian Pacing Derby, though the Aussie import went off at 1-5. For our money, the chances of a specific upset were strong and along with many we were right to wager that way.

We won with McWicked ($9.70, $2.70, $2.40) who did not struggle to defeat the favorite and returned a fair price for the effort. His top position in the Breeders Crown Top Fives was a good call for the aged pacing division and he guaranteed maintaining it with this win.

Unfortunately, our call for an upset in the Messenger was unfounded. JK Wildfire (41-1) never got rolling, as did the winner, Stay Hungry, who now has only one more leg of the unheralded pacing triple crown [sic] to win for whatever that accomplishment is worth to him.



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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 53 active horses (an 21-percent win hit rate and a 47-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 week) It is up to you to follow horses that have not performed before this weekly review

Winners

Eowyn, $29.40, $8.00, $3.60, Red Mile
Drink Whiskey, $21.00, $7.00, $5.60, Monticello
Captain Malicious, $13.40, $6.80, $5.40, Meadows
Latent Print, $10.20, $4.80, $2.60, Plainridge
Fire N Diamonds, $5.20, $3.00, $2.10, Plainridge
Bakken, $4.60, $2.50, $2.10, Batavia
Smackitwithahammer, $4.60, $3.00, $2.20, Northfield
Always A Varoom, $4.40, $3.00, $2.60, Hoosier
Met’s Hall, $4.40, $3.00, $2.80, Mohawk
Celebrity Ruth, $4.20, $3.10, $2.70, Yonkers
Call Me Queen Be, $2.60, $2.70, $2.40 ok, Yonkers
 
Seconds

Greekona, $5.40, $3.80 (Exacta $12.20), Running Aces
Shelly On My Mind, $3.80, $3.20 (Exacta $11.80), Hawthorne
The Bruiser, $3.20, $2.80, Freehold
Master Royal, $3.00, $2.60, Running Aces
Are You In, $2.90, $2.30 (Exacta $8.70), Batavia
Gerardo, $2.90, $2.40, Mohawk
Texaco Man, $2.80, $2.80 ok, Plainridge
Chapter Fashion, $2.70, $2.10 (Exacta $2.60), Vernon
Hey Blondie, $2.10, $2.10, Pocono

Thirds

Stritch, $7.80, Meadows
Private Interview, $4.20, Grand River
Remember Then, $2.80, Hoosier
Johnny Bravo, $2.60, Mohawk
Reformed Renegade, n/s, Ocean

News & Notes

The Red Mile announced the creation of a $1-million race for two-year-old trotters to debut on Grand Circuit weekend in 2019. The event was initiated by the Hambletonian Society. The parameters of the event will be announced on Sept. 16, when the Red Mile hosts the $250,000 Kentucky Sires Stakes finals, the finale of the $4.5-million program on Fayette County Fair Day.

Fraser Downs opens on Sept 20, racing on Thursdays and Fridays through December. At the end of October, some Sundays will be added. In November, the programs will drop Thursdays and be presented on Fridays and Sundays. One special program will take place on Boxing Day, Dec. 26. Make note that the British Columbia raceway is in the Pacific Daylight Time Zone.

Breeders Crown 2018 will be a program with 12 championship races on one evening at The Downs at Mohegan Sun Pocono on Saturday, Oct. 27. On the Friday and Saturday the week before, eliminations (as needed) for any or all of the divisions will make up the evenings’ programs. On finals night, there will be a special guest. The connections of Foiled Again will be on hand to stroll along the track and meet fans as well, as a celebration of his victory in the 2013 Breeders Crown at Pocono. Foiled Again will also lead the post parade for one of the Breeders Crown races as one of his last public appearances before retiring as the sport’s wealthiest standardbred. Post time for the 2018 Breeders Crown is 5:30 p.m. The elims and the finals will be covered live for TwinSpires bettors.

Ernie Martinez, who brokered the deal that brought star pacer Lazarus N to North America and put together the group that bought the trotter Tactical Landing as a yearling for $800,000, has reached an agreement to purchase the undefeated Indiana-based frosh trotter Swandre The Giant, according to Harnessracing.com. Martinez is purchasing Swandre The Giant for Adam and Chris Bowden's Diamond Creek Farm, Jerry Silva and Howard Taylor. While Martinez did not reveal a price for the trotter, he said it was in the range of seven digits.

 
Extraordinary Extras

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