By Mark Ratzky, publicity – Cal
Expo Harness
A
pair of $4,400 Pacing co-features and mandatory payouts on all wagers are in
the spotlight on Sunday’s closing-night Watch and Wager LLC program at Cal
Expo.
There
will be a nine-race card to down the curtain on the winter/spring meet, with a
first post of 5 p.m. and mandatory payouts in all wagers. The trotters and
pacers are scheduled to return to action on Saturday, October 24, which will
also include a simulcast of the full Breeders Crown program from Mohawk.
A
field of nine will line-up in the Open III Pace for the males, which goes as
the finale on the card and finds Mar Dream among the major players for the
potent combination trainer Bob Johnson and driver Mooney Svendsen.
The
Open III Distaff Pace goes as the seventh of the night and has Perfect Pitch
and Lexie’s Delight being assigned the outside two post positions for that
affair.
There
are four wagers offered with a reduced 16% takeout rate and there will be
mandatory payouts in all of them. They are the Jackpot 6 and Hi-5, which are both
10-cent bets; the 50-cent Pick 5; and the 20-cent Pick 4, which comes with a
$25,000-guaranteed pool as part of the USTA Strategic Wagering Program.
Coming
into the final two nights of action here at Cal Expo, Steve Wiseman holds a
six-length lead in the driver standings over the fall/winter champ Luke Plano,
while Bob Johnson will easily claim the training title over fall/winter leader
Tim Brown.
*******
THANK YOU TO ALL OUR FANS AND HORSEMEN!
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Speak English makes up for lost time
After
missing the first few Sire Stakes, Speak English has streaked to the head of
the sophomore filly pacing class by accounting for three of the final four
added-money gatherings for the division.
A
homebred daughter of Power Or Art who races for Frank Nevarez and is
conditioned by Gordie Graham, Speak English completed this stand by making
every pole a winning one in last Sunday’s Sire Stakes in a dominating
performance.
The
dark-hued filly was 15-1 when she made her debut in a March 15 stakes, but
looked more like a 1-5 shot as she overpowered the leaders in eye-catching
fashion with Tim Maier at the controls. She set her mark of 1:55 2/5 winning a
Sire Stakes two weeks later, then was the beaten favorite in the next one
before rebounding to prevail last weekend.
“She
actually qualified last June at Balmoral and then we got a qualifier into her
here in December, but she came up with a virus and we didn’t want to rush her
back,” Graham explained.
“I
was a little surprised she was such a big price for that first start, because
we knew she had plenty of talent. She came her back half in :55 3/5 that night,
which is awfully impressive, especially for a first-time starter.”
Gordie noted Speak English’s lone setback on April 12
was likely due to a cough she had earlier in the week, and she certainly
exerted her dominance in the following start while changing tactics to the
front end with new pilot Luke Plano. “I told Luke he was on his own as far as
tactics and he went right to the front with her,” Graham said. “She had always
been a little lazy on the front end when she was training, but she was strong
that night and Luke came back and said she was a real nice filly.”
Her
mentor reported Speak English will now “get lots of green grass” and be readied
for a return to stakes action when this meet starts up again in October. It
should be fun, unless you’re one of her rivals.
