Fresh Faces In Breakfast With The Babies Spotlight

Harness racing at The Meadowlands

Breakfast With The Babies went to post at The Meadowlands on Saturday, July 20 at 9 a.m. on a windless morning over a fast track with clear skies and temperatures in the high 70’s (or mid-20s in Celsius).

Delaney Hanover (Scott Zeron) won at first asking to take the opener. Zeron placed the Muscle Hill filly along the rail third early on in a race with no moves made until the final quarter when Baffle (Trond Smedshammer) tipped from the pocket into the lead with Delaney Hanover following that rival then out-gaming her late stretch to get the 1:58.1 mark with Fateful (Jimmy Takter) along for a lively third. Lucas Wallin trains and owns a piece of the winner, a $160,000 Lexington purchase along with Wiesman Farms, LLC and Shermay Stables. Hanover Shoe Farms is the breeder.

Wallin came right back in race two, driving Titian to a 1:58 win in her debut. The pair got away third, fanned out as the field entered the stretch and went by under her own power over a very game Expedient (Andy Miller) and a flying late Kadena (Marcus Melander). This Muscle Hill lass was a big ticket $250,000 buy at Harrisburg for the trainer in partnership with Kjell Magne Andersen from breeder Order By Stables.

Members Only (Andy McCarthy) won the next in style, setting all the fractions and stepping home impressively in :27.3 to end the 1:58 mile over an overmatched Global Sensation (Melander) in what was essentially a match race when two of the four starters went off stride before the quarter. Tony Alagna trains the winner, a Hanover-bred Greenshoe colt who sold at Lexington for $60,000, owned by Rob LeBlanc and Pryde Stables.

McCarthy converted a perfect pocket ride into victory with Chapter Seven son Monserrate, a $200,000 Lexington colt for trainer Andrew Harris. The pair followed closely behind Wellsze J (Anibal Boras) through the early fractions, took out after the leader at the five-eighths and wore that determined rival down gradually before getting clear in the final strides of the :28.2 end to the 1:57.1 mile. Steve Stewart, Black Creek Farm and Maumee River bred Monserrate, who is now owned by the trainer in partnership with Bill Pollack and Bruce Areman.

Jimmy Marohn, Jr was in to drive Gimlet Hanover for D.R. Ackerman this morning and gave that Bar Hopping gelding a beautiful steer to a 1:56.1 win over Greenma (Smedshammer), closing to his outside and while besting a very game Sinatra (Andy Miller) who set the fractions and got home safe thanks to Andy’s steadying hand late. A $50,000 Harrisburg yearling bred by Hanover, Gimlet Hanover is owned by the trainer.

The 21-year-old junior driving champion from down under, Carter Dalgety won the sixth race in his Meadowlands debut with the homebred Sweet Lou filly Beach Rules for trainer Linda Toscano. Content to ride along near the back through the early postings, Dalgety waited until the last straight to tip Beach Rules wide and she roared by the competition with a :27 end to the 1:53.4 mile to get up while in hand over Bythelightofthemoon (Pat Ryder). It was also the winner’s debut for breeder / owners Conrad Zurich and Purple Haze Stables.

Wavemaker (Andy Miller) had the game face on today, insisting on the lead early then setting all the fractions before scooting home in a flat 27 to get the 1:53.1 win by open lengths over Cookie Air (Josert Fonseca). This son of Tall Dark Stranger is a Brittany bred with the farm retaining a share along with partners Riverview Racing, Steve Head and Pryde Stables after selling for $300,000 at Lexington last fall.

Scratched down to a match-up of three sons of Tall Dark Stranger, Banderas took the last of the baby races with a gate-to-wire 1:54.4 win, home in :26.4 under minimal urging from driver Anibal Boras over Lafitte (Andy Miler) with Interstatedaydream (Fonseca) an interesting third after a break at the start. First foal of the top stakes mare winning Reflect With Me, Banderas is another Brittany Farms prodigy and is owned by the same group who own Wavemaker, comprised of the breeder along with Riverview Racing, Steve Head and Pryde Stables.

(Meadowlands)

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