Ken Hanover, Balenciaga Win Pocono Features
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The Captaintreacherous colt Ken Hanover, away from the races since rocketing home in :25 to be second to Christchurch in a Meadowlands Pace prep, showed no ill effects from the time away, setting a soft pace then turning up the speed to win in 1:51.3 in the $17,000 featured pace at Pocono Downs at Mohegan Pennsylvania on Saturday afternoon (July 15).
David Miller paid a visit to Pocono to guide Ken Hanover, and he patiently guided the sophomore past Night Hawk just at the :28 quarter. The winning favourite received nothing but respect and got away with soft mid-race fractions of :57 and 1:25.1. Miller asked his colt for speed through the last quarter, and Ken Hanover responded by bulleting home in :26.2 (against a day-long stretch headwind), with the game Night Hawk staying with him to miss by 1-1/4 lengths, with the rest of the field never factoring.
Ken Hanover, who has two Pennsylvania Sire Stakes wins and a PA All-Stars victory among his five victories this season, is trained by Polie Mallar, co-owner with Patrick Leavitt, William Jordan and Dennis Osterholt, and looks ready to give the "glamour" division's top colts another crack in the near future.
In the $17,000 featured trot, Balenciaga was also quite impressive with a 1:52.1 win. Matt Kakaley tucked early as sharp fractions of :26.4 and :56 were posted, then moved the Chapter Seven gelding uncovered, gradually worked to the lead past the 1:24.1 three-quarters, and just kept pouring it on to win by 10-1/2 lengths. Paul Kelley trains the talented trotter for S R F Stable and Crawford Farms Racing.
Matt Kakaley had four winners on the Saturday card; Tyler Buter and Anthony Napolitano three; Simon Allard and “Miller” two (one each for David and Marcus).
The two-year-old pacing fillies will dominate the 6 p.m. (EDT) card at Pocono on Sunday, with four Sire Stakes divisions and five Stallion Series sections likely showcasing many emerging top performers.
(PHHA / Pocono)