The
hotly anticipated matchup between Father Patrick and Trixton will
take place this Saturday night at The Meadowlands in the $317,000 Stanley
Dancer Memorial. The Grand Circuit stake for sophomore trotting colts is a
highlight of the dazzling Meadowlands Pace all-star under card. A
field of twelve were named into the race, including this
marquee match-up of Jimmy Takter trainees who are currently at the top
of everyone's Hambletonian list and will meet competitively for the
very first time.
Hall of Fame horseman
Takter has trained many champions and won the Hambletonian twice but never has
he possessed an embarrassment of riches such as this. When you include the
accomplished Nuncio who was moved to the stable after this two-year-old season
and leaves from post seven in the Dancer, Takter comes into the “Hambletonian
homestretch” with a true triple threat.
Bought from the
Hunterton Farms consignment by the partnership of Brixton Medical AB
and Christina Takter for $360,000, Trixton was highest priced
yearling colt sold in 2012. Big, dark and bred to trot, the colt is truly
a striking individual. His pedigree reeks of Hambo success, from the first crop
of 2009 Hambletonian winner Muscle Hill out of Emilie Cas El, she a daughter of
Hall of Fame matron Amour Angus, one of trotting's great lines.
While he customarily
employs the top catch drivers, Takter has been the primary driver for Trixton
throughout his career citing the need for stability in the sulky. The colt was
raced carefully last season, winning half of his eight starts and flashing
brilliance while exhibiting immaturity at times. An injury coming out of the
Kindergarten final last fall ended his season and the time away from the track
allowed Trixton to grow into the horse Jimmy though he could be.
He got a pair of showy
qualifiers and a useful overnight under his belt to begin the 2014 season then
drew immediate notice dominating the Simpson Memorial field in a withering
1:51.2 with ridiculous ease. He then seared through the New Jersey Sires Stakes
in record time before lowering the Canadian record to 1:51.3 in the Goodtimes.
Each of his wins has been accomplished with the greatest of ease, the smallest
margin being over four lengths. Their assignment this week however, has
been complicated by drawing post position twelve, in the second tier.
Never one to shy away
from praising the good ones, Jimmy has been fairly reserved when discussing
Trixton, although the “G” word (great) did slip out after his Goodtimes romp
when he observed that “…great horses overcome anything.”
While Trixton took some
time to find his game, Father Patrick has been virtually flawless from the
start. He's a product of classic Brittany Farms breeding, a mating of
Cantab Hall and Gala Dream. He is the second millionaire from his dam, being a
full brother to Pastor Stephen, the maternal family boasting champions like
Sugar Trader and Chocolatier.
Father Patrick is a
different type of trotter, propelled by a very efficient gait with no
wasted motion in his strides straight and true. His tractability
is one of his great advantages, negotiating through the course at
high speed like a fine sports car.
After annexing every
major stake and the Dan Patch divisional award in 2013, Father Patrick has returned
at age three to win each of his five starts this year with minimal effort. His
most recent conquest was the Earl Beal Memorial at Pocono in world record time
of 1:50.2f under
his own power, the pull-out earplugs never drawn.
Career-wise Father
Patrick has now won 15 of 16 starts and in excess of $1million for ownership
group the Father Patrick Stable who paid $105,000 for him as a
yearling. Diamond Creek Farm joined the partnership last fall with
the intention of standing him at the conclusion of his racing career.
His driver throughout
has been Yannick Gingras who was nothing short of ebullient in his praise of
the colt when interviewed after the Beal, "He's a dream come true," said
Gingras. "When I came to race in the U.S that's what I wanted. When I made
the move to the Meadowlands, I made it to drive great horses and he's
definitely the most talented horse I've driven."
Takter has been consistent in his praise for Father
Patrick, declaring him the “Best horse I have trained” on a few occasions and
then expounding in his own post Beal declaration, “"This horse, he trotted
here a [1]:50.2 world record. I know this track is fantastic, but Yannick never
even asked him -- he had the [ear] plugs left in him. He was sitting on a good
second anyways. He is just a three-year-old. We saw the fastest trotter today
in [1]:49 here and this is just a three-year-old. This is a heck of a
performance."
Considered
a master horseman by his peers, to achieve the success Jimmy has earned
throughout his decorated career the drive must be extreme, the will iron. In
his heart of hearts, driving a horse that he has developed and trained to a win
in the Hambletonian would surely hold great allure.
Saturday’s race may shed considerable light on just who
will be the favorite for the August 2 Hambletonian.
The
Saturday night card at The Meadowlands has an early post time of 6:30pm. It
promises to be one of the season’s best with seven Grand Circuit stakes and
four New Jersey Sires Stakes finals among the 13 races with total purses in
excess of $2.5million. The $776,000 Meadowlands Pace will be broadcast live on
the CBS Sports Network from 9-10pm and the whole card will be
featured on the TVG Network. Visit www.playmeadowlands.com for further information and make plans to
attend.
