by Lou Monaco, for the Meadowlands
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. – Yannick Gingras and Jimmy Takter do it
All The Time.
Gingras rallied in the stretch with All
The Time in 1:52.1 to win by 3¾ lengths over Caprice Hill to capture the 91st
edition of the $500,000 Hambletonian Oaks for 3-year-old fillies on
Hambletonian Day Saturday at the Meadowlands.
Gingras won his third straight Oaks, as did Takter, who now has six victories overall in the Hambletonian’s sister event.
“I was hoping to follow Brian Sears (with Windowshopper), I thought his filly was one of the fillies to beat, and they had a little bobble on the backstretch,” said Gingras. “She felt so strong and she was able to catch the gap really quickly. I was just hoping not to be first up around the last turn. I figured John (Campbell) would come (with Celebrity Eventsy) and when he did it, it made my job really easy.”
The 2-year-old Breeders Crown champion from last year paid $9.20, 4.40 and 3.00. Caprice Hill, the 5-2 favorite with Tim Tetrick aboard, finished second, paying $4.40 and 3.00, and Celebrity Eventsy, driven by John Campbell and the fifth choice at 5-1, rounded out the top three, paying $3.60 for show.
“She was really sharp today. She had a good week and the timing had to be perfect. I know I had a ticket that was very strong with a couple of good fillies. We pulled the front shoes on her, which I think might have kicked her up a little bit. It was the first time she ever did that,” said Takter. “There were three horses in the race that I had tremendous respect for. We were the lucky ones.”
Tetrick had Caprice Hill on the lead at
the top of the stretch, but Gingras had another gear and was able to cruise to
the finish line as All The Time improved to 11-for-19 all-time, snapping a
two-race losing streak.
