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Monday, August 25, 2014

BURKE STABLES’, ALL BETS OFF, FEATURED IN THE $117,000 MIGHTY M’S NYSS FOR SOPHOMORE PACERS

One of the best sophomore pacers in the country, All Bets Off, from the powerful Ron Burke Stable, will be the featured attraction when Monticello Raceway presents the last preliminary leg of the rich New York Sire Stakes program on Tuesday afternoon, August 26.

All Bets Off, owner of a 1:48.2 record, is currently fourth on the list of money winning 3 year old colt pacers this year with over $511,000 in earnings. The son of Bettor’s Delight-Armbro Penelope has seven wins, two seconds and one third in 10 starts this year and he comes into his $38,500 split off  three consecutive victories the last in 1:50.3  in the  Carl Millstein Final at Northfield Park on August 15.

Owned by Burke Racing, Frank Baldachino, The Panhellenic Stable and Rosemary Shelswell, Burke has once again assigned the driving duties to Matt Kakaley when All Bets Off  starts from post five in the first race on the card. 

In all, Burke will send out six sophomore pacers that afternoon, four in the three NYSS splits while two others will race in the Excelsior Stakes. That means the Burke Stable will have an entry in one of the NYSS events and it so happens that it will be in the event that All Bets Off is in.

Joining him on the mutuel ticket will be stablemate Forty Five Red, to be driven by Mark MacDonald, another nice colt but not the caliber of All Bets Off. It appears that Burke is probably starting All Bets Off in the sire stakes to make sure he has a enough points to qualify for the $225,000 Final at Yonkers Raceway on September 13.

In the second NYSS division, race four, the Jimmy Takter-trained Capital Account gets the odds maker’s nod as the early favorite from the pole position. A winner of almost $105,000 this year the American Ideal-Copywriter colt, owned by Brittany Farms owns a record of 1:51 taken earlier this year at the Meadowlands.

Brett Miller will be in the pilot’s seat when Capital Account leaves from post position one.
Another Brittany Farms pacer, Winds Of Change, whom they co-own with Val D’Or Farms, is rated the favorite in the third NYSS split, race eight on the card. Trained by Linda Toscano the son of American Ideal-Art’s Temptress, has won two of his last three starts at Tioga Downs the fastest in 1:50.2.
Winds Of Change will leave from the four hole with Brett Miler at the controls.

The undercard features four Excelsior Series paces which will go  as races two, five, six and seven on the 11- race card. Arguably, the best of the starters in those events is Lauren and Bob Tucker’s Believeinthespirit, an Art Major gelding out of Spirit Of the West, who is a five-time winner thus far this year with over $41,000 in earnings.

Trainer Ed Lohmeyer, has assigned Jimmy Morrill, Jr. to do the driving when the pacer leaves from post five in the second race on the card.

First post is slated for 12:50pm