Takter
Factor Looms Large This Weekend and on Road to the Hambletonian
Hall of Fame
trainer Jimmy Takter typically has some aces in hand heading into a big weekend
of major stakes and on the Road to the Hambletonian, Saturday, August 3 at the
Meadowlands Racetrack.
On Saturday,
Takter sends out a pair of three-year-olds in both the Earl Beal, Jr. Memorial
and the Max C. Hempt Memorial at Pocono Downs. Those two races, plus the
Ben Franklin Free For All, go for $500,000 each. The $300,000 James M.
Lynch Memorial is also on the card, which will be available for simulcast
wagering at the Meadowlands.
Last year,
Takter send out two sophomores in the $1.5 million Hambletonian. He drove
Guccio to a close second, and the favorite Uncle Peter finished seventh, placed
eighth. Takter won the Hambletonian with Malabar Man in 1997 and Muscle
Massive in 2010.
Currently,
Takter appears to have a Hambletonian dynamic duo in world champion
Dontyouforgetit, and Corky, who was the New Jersey Sires Stakes Champion as a
freshman.
“At
this point, I believe Dontyouforgetit and Corky are my top two Hambletonian
horses,” admitted Takter. “I thought High Bridge [post one in a $50,000
consolation on Saturday at Pocono Downs] would make the Beal final. He
trotted a great mile to finish fourth in his elimination. He’s just
slightly behind them right now. Bluto has high speed and Muscle Mountain
[post four in race six on Friday at the Meadowlands] was used pretty hard last
time. I think Muscle Mountain will race well on Friday.”
Both
Dontyouforgetit and Corky won their Beal eliminations in a career best.
Dontyouforgetit, ranked fourth on the Road to the Hambletonian top ten list,
found room up the inside to score in 1:52.1 last week with Yannick Gingras
driving. The $453,569 winner for Solveig’s Partners of East Windsor, NJ
added trotting hopples this season and drew post two on a three-race winning
streak. What he lacks in size, he more than makes up for in speed,
versatility and determination.
“He’s
not the cleanest gaited horse,” noted Takter. “He kind of interferes with
himself a little bit, but he’s the most honest little fella I’ve ever been
around. If he gets a trip he doesn’t care who’s in front him.
Yannick said he felt super, but when he watched the replay he thought the colt
didn’t look so good. I told him never mind as long as he felt super.”
Corky,
a son of Muscles Yankee, went wire-to-wire in 1:52.4 after a :27.3 third
quarter with Dave Miller. He followed up on his first win of the season
in a division of the Historic at Tioga Downs in 1:54.4 and a second in the New
Jersey Sires Stakes Final at the Meadowlands. The consistent colt, ranked
fifth in the Hambletonian top ten, sports a $325,968 bankroll for Christina
Takter of East Windsor, NJ and John and Jim Fielding of Toronto, Ontario.
“Corky
is such a laid back horse,” said Takter. “I mean, basically he’s very
lazy. I drove him once [on May 17], and I couldn’t get him going. I
just don’t have the driving skills of Dave Miller. He’s just a strange
horse, and I’ve been aiming him more for the Hambletonian than anything.
I’m sure he’s going to get a piece of the action on Saturday, and he could win
it. He hasn’t been off the board in six starts this year.”
Takter
commented on two other Beal entrants.
“Royalty
For Life [post one] made a nice recovery from his break, and we know he’s a
class horse. He finished second in the Breeders Crown and he’s a fast
horse. Smilin Eli hasn’t done
anything wrong, but of course post nine is
going to compromise anything he tries to do.”
Takter
will also be busy on Saturday at Pocono Downs with a pair of contenders in the
Hempt, including 2012 Breeders Crown champion and $548,390 winner Rockin
Amadeus. The son of Rocknroll Hanover, a Meadowlands Pace eligible, has
drawn post four with Yannick Gingras. Bred and owned by Lothlorien of
Cheltenham, Ontario, Takter has now trained all five foals of the dam Kikikatie
[Rockin Image, Grams Legacy, Time To Kill, Rockin Amadeus and Tellitlikeitis].
“He
didn’t come into his elimination last week one hundred percent,” Takter
revealed. “He got hurt climbing his stall up in Canada. It was a
gash in his knee. We debated whether to race him or not in his
elimination for the North America Cup. He was jogging sound, but he
didn’t race good [fifth]. Also, his white count was elevated after a
trauma like that.
“I
thought he raced okay last week [third from post eight], and he had two pretty
darn good horses in front of him [Captaintreacherous and Vegas Vacation].
I don’t know if he’s ready to win this, but I think he’s going to step up and
put in a good performance.”
Sunfire Blue
Chip suddenly emerged as a player in the glamour boy division with an
eye-opening 1:48.3 elimination score. Yannick Gingras will drive the son
of American Ideal, a full brother to millionaire Heston Blue Chip, and Takter
has high hopes for this talented colt.
“He’s
a horse I always thought very highly of,” said Takter. “We had to shut
him down in April, and he showed us he had some ability. Then, Yannick
thought he was a winner in his elimination for the Rooney, but he didn’t handle
the turns that well at Yonkers. He just couldn’t use him that hard there.
He finished fourth in that final, yet wasn’t really comfortable with the half
mile track.
“He
came back to win an overnight at Pocono in 1:49.2 [on June 15] before winning
his elimination in 1:48.3. He’s the real deal. Unfortunately, we
have post eight on Saturday, but you know about the open draw going in, and it
kind of makes it interesting. The two top horses in the race have post
seven [Vegas Vacation] and nine [Captaintreacherous]. It’s not going to
be easy for Captaintreacherous out there. I think it’s going to be a very
exciting race.”
