By Ray Cotolo, for The Red Mile
LEXINGTON, KY— Making his move for the top
midway down the backstretch, Always B Miki set fast fractions before driver
David Miller implored him through the stretch, advancing to win the $138,000
Allerage Farms Open Pace in an all-time record mile of 1:46.
Always B Miki got away third as Shamballa was
sent to the lead through a :26.1 opening quarter. David Miller showed Always B
Miki the whip and he rushed first over to claim command to the half, timed in
:52.2. He continued his sprint around the far turn, passing three-quarters in
1:19.4 before being chased home by Shamballa and All Bets Off in the stretch.
A five-year-old horse by Always A Virgin out of
the Artsplace mare Artstopper, Always B Miki won his 27th race in 50 starts, earning
$2,296,368 for owners Bluewood Stable, Roll The Dice Stable and Christina
Takter. He is trained by Jimmy Takter and paid $2.10 to win.
“It’s a moment I’m never going to forget,” Jimmy
Takter said. “You don’t get horses like this for long, and it’s definitely
emotional to be around him. I can’t wait to see him as a stallion. His
personality and everything about him will be well-received through the sport.
He’s not the easiest horse because he had a lot of injuries, but what this
horse overcame every single day nobody else did.
“He has the Breeders Crown and TVG Final; those
are the only two races left for him.”
“I really thought the three-quarters was maybe a
little too slow,” David Miller said. “But like I’ve said: he’s an incredible
horse and does incredible things. I couldn’t be happier with him.”
Circling by Frost Damage Blues and Lady Shadow
as they battled around the far turn, Praire Sweetheart advanced to the front
and defeated her older rivals to win the $112,500 Allerage Farms Filly &
Mare Pace in 1:49.1.
Lady Shadow set the pace, going fractions of
:26.4 and :54.4 before receiving pressure from Frost Damage Blues, pulling
first over from fourth, into the far turn. The two matched strides through a
1:22.2 third-quarter before Frost Damage Blues took the top. Lady Shadow
retreated at the pylons while Prairie Sweetheart moved three wide, powering by
Frost Damage Blues at the eighth pole. Prairie Sweetheart finished in front of
Bedroomconfessions and Venus Delight, who stormed down the center of the track
to finish second and third respectively.
Prairie Sweetheart, a three-year-old filly by
Royal Millennium out of the Masterman mare Taylors Lady, remained undefeated in
12 starts with her lifetime-best win. She has earned $155,024 for owner Let It
Ride Stables Inc. and trainer Ross Croghan. Driven by Matt Kakaley, she paid
$14.80 to win.
“We recently purchased her,” Ross Croghan said.
“I got a call from a friend of mine up at Pocono, and he said ‘I just saw a
filly that looked fantastic.’ I watched the replay, and I had to agree with
him, so I watched her again the next week, and the next week, and I just
thought this filly has something special.
“We actually purchased her the day before I was
going to leave for the [Little Brown] Jug. I was going to be away for a month
and I didn’t want to be away from her for that amount of time, so I brought her
with me.
“We gave her a qualifier here last week just to
see how she was and Matty [Kakaley] said she was super and that there were two
seconds up her sleeve if he ever wanted to use it,” Croghan also said. “I spoke
to the owners, and they’re both here enjoying the week in Lexington, so they
opted to pop up with the supplement and watch the race, and it worked out in
our favor.”
Flanagan Memory fanned off cover and trotted
down the center of the track to take the $101,000 Allerage Farms Open Trot in
1:51.2.
Jl Cruze was sent to the lead, clearing early
race-leader Muscial Rhythm through a :27.2 opening quarter. After a :55 half,
Jl Cruze braced the challenge of Obrigado into the far turn. They were stride
for stride after a :21.4 third-quarter before Jl Cruze reemerged to the lead.
Crazy Wow, tracking Obrigado from second over, edged three wide and trotted by
Jl Cruze to take the lead before Flanagan Memory and Brian Sears rushed down
the course to grab command. Crazy Wow took second, while Jl Cruze held third.
A six-year-old horse by Kadabra out of the
Yankee Glide mare Classy Stacy, Flanagan Memory won his 18th race in 65 tries, compiling
$1,163,070 for owners Liette Flanagan and trainer Rene Dion. He paid $5.00 to
win.
“I was real happy to be third over,” Brian Sears
said. “I was just hoping Mark [MacDonald on Obrigado] went out a little bit and
didn’t wait too long for Ake [Svanstedt on Centurion Atm] to make a decision.
This horse loves to finish up in the last quarter, so we were in a good
position.”
“He has gotten better and better through the
years. I was fortunate to drive him a year ago and win the [John] Cashman at
the Meadowlands. He was a little disappointing in Canada a couple of weeks ago
[in the Maple Leaf Trot], but I’m glad we’re going in on a positive note; we
have the International Trot coming up.”
