East Rutherford, NJ – Saturday’s Meadowlands baby races began at
10 a.m. on a cloudy morning with slight stretch headwinds and temperatures in
the low 70’s.
Today’s trotting
races were the Yannick Gingras show as the top Grand Circuit's
driver swept all six, hooking up with trainer Jimmy Takter on five of
those.
Trotting fillies opened
the day with a nice looking Chapter Seven filly named Sevenbuyeleven winning
gate to wire in 1:58 with a 28 final quarter for Gingras. Linda Toscano trains
the $50,000 Harrisburg but for owner Kenny Jacobs. Natalie Hanover (Ake
Svanstedt) was second and Dab Hanover ( Jimmy Takter / Mattias Melander) third.
Yannick came right back
to win race two for Takter with Bella Glos, a Cantab Hall filly that cost Black
Horse Racing $95,000 at Harrisburg last fall. She led at every call and
finished well in hand through a 28 flat end to her 1:57.2 mile. A pair of
fillies from the Svanstedt barn followed, Vivacious Allie (Svanstedt) second
and Lucky Ava third.
Gingras' reign with the
fairer sex continued in race three with another Takter trainee. Air Quote
Hanover cut the 1:57.4 mile, sprinting home in 27.4 under her own power. This
one is a daughter of Donato Hanover the was a $70,000 Harrisburg purchase for
Order By Stables last fall. Svanstedt was again second best, this time with
What A Knockout.
The $350,000 Lexington
purchase by Lennart Agrin’s SRF Stable, Go To Hill (pictured) was an impressive
winner for the Gingras/Takter combo with a front end 1:59.1 win, final quarter
in 29 seconds. The Muscle Hill colt opened a considerable lead mid-stretch then
coasted in on his own. Spee Club closed up nicely as Svanstedt’s futile pursuit
of Takter ran to three in a row.
Hill Street continued
the mastery for Takter and Gingras with a 2:00.4 win. Yannick evidenced why he
is in such demand with the youngsters as the aggressive son of Muscle Hill
wanted to go forward right from the start. Gingras had other ideas and wrangled
him into fourth early through the slow 31.2 quarter. Things did not speed up
much down the backside despite Svanstedt moving his $200,000 colt
Sonofamillionaire to the top in 1:02.2 as Yannick edged his charge out of
fourth to settle in second behind that one. That was the order through the 1:32.3
six panels where Gingras fanned him off the leader's back and Hill Street
trotted on by through a 28.1 last quarter to get the win. Ray
Schnittker closed up nicely with his Chasin’ Dreams to lose in a photo while
Ake had to settle for third this time. The partnership of Brixton Medical,
Fielding, Liverman and Hatfield own the $180,000 Lexington buy.
The final piece of the
trotting baby sweep for Gingras was with Takter’s Andover Hall colt Storming
Mist. The $120,000 Lexington purchase sat a comfortable pocket behind Fourth
Dimension (Marcus Melander) through easy fractions and went by willingly
through a 28.1 end to the 1:59.3 mile to hold off the closing Six Pack
(Svanstedt). Brixton Medical, Fielding, Liverman and RAW Equine share ownership
of Storming Mist.
There were only two
races for pacers, fillies first and Hurrikane Shorty was the winner in 1:56.3
for Jimmy Marohn, Jr. The pair had the early lead, released eventual second
place finisher Dance Blue (Gingras) through the middle fractions then brushed
by in the stretch through a 27.2 final quarter. John McDermott, Jr trains the
$8,000 Goshen Sale Art Major filly for Jonathan Klee, Pegasis Investments and
GR Vierno.
JK Musicman took the
colt pace from just off the pace in 1:56 / 27.1. Damion Diesel Hahn
(Schnittker) cut the fractions and held up ‘til mid-stretch then gave way first
to the winner then Major Sugar Rush snuck by very late for the place. JK
Musicman is a homebred American Ideal trained by Nancy Johansson for the 3
Brothers Stables.
Today’s a big day at
The Meadowlands with the Belmont Stakes up and both BeerFest and the hotly
anticipated Hamburger Cook Off both on the bill tonight. Post time is 7:15 p.m.
