More than $600,000 in total purses will be up for grabs on Thursday, July 24 during Harrington Raceway’s 13-race program which will take place on Governor’s Day at the Delaware State Fair.
For the third consecutive year, the program will be contested at night. First-race post time will be 7 p.m.
Four $100,000 Delaware Standardbred Breeders Fund (DSBF) finals will be held for three-year-old pacers and trotters.
Signature events for older horses such as the $40,000 Governor’s Cup will have local bragging rights on the line during the popular evening of racing which is the focal point for many Delaware horsemen.
The filly pacing final is the first of the $100,000 races to be contested. Track record holder Seboomook Fool Yah (2/1, Allan Davis) looks to continue her current winning trend. The Wayne Givens trainee has won two straight races and will start from Post 4. The Wiz Kids Stable’s Jonigold (3/1, Corey Callahan) will start from Post 5 for trainer Bart Dalious after having swept her eliminations.
The filly trotting final is slated as the fifth race on the program, with trainer/co-owner Art Stafford Jr. and Wyatt Starkey’s Overnight Hit (2/1, Stafford Jr.) starting from the rail after having won both of her eliminations.
In the trotting colt final, trainer/co-owner Bob Shahan, Jimmy Parsons Jr., and Ashley Parsons’ I Like My Boss (2-1, Jon Roberts) will look to remain undefeated as he will bid for his 12th consecutive win from Post 5.
The final for pacing colts is Race 11 and is as wide open as any of the DSBF final events. Karen Walls’ Elite Awards (5-2), and Cavalli Pazzi Stables’ Casino Bags Carlo (3-1, Vince Copeland) are among the highly competitive group.
The Governor’s Cup will complete the daily double as the second race. A field long on depth will fill the starting gate, including John Dayton’s Just A Jolt (2-1, Victor Kirby) who must overcome Post 8 to earn his 12th win of the year for trainer Jim King Jr. The Honorable Governor Jack Markell is expected to present the trophy to the winning connections.
The Legislator’s Cup, featuring Delaware’s top pacing mares, will start the first leg of the Pick 4 (Race 3 through Race 6). Two-time defending champion, North State Street Stable’s Monochromatic (2-1, Corey Callahan) will start from Post 6 in pursuit of her 51st career win for trainer Dylan Davis. Fresh threat My Ideal Hanover (3/1, Kirby) has won four straight for owner Jason Johnson and has drawn Post 2.
The Charles Murphy Jr. Memorial Trot will wrap up the Pick 4 sequence. Barbara Boese’s Awsome Valley (2-1, Tony Morgan) is back from a stint at Yonkers Raceway and has drawn Post 6 in the full field.
(Harrington Raceway)