Last year’s freshman pacing phenom Massive Speed, who won every Maine event that he ever entered, started his sophomore season in similar fashion as Bangor Raceway hosted two $16,739 divisions of the Maine Sire Stakes for three-year-old male pacers on Wednesday, June 18.

Part of the powerful Marc Tardif stable, Massive Speed assembled an impressive 10-for-10 record in the Pine Tree State during 2024, and with a few solid efforts in the Massachusetts Stakes as well, the pacer amassed $183,089 in purse earnings at two.

Fast forward to the present, and it looks like the Tardif-trained, Leighton Property-owned gelding will be, once again, the one to watch in this season’s state-bred glamour boys division.

Racing off of a single qualifier in late May, 1-5 favourite Massive Speed was moved to the pegs from post two by regular pilot Walter Case Jr., and observed patiently as a scramble for the lead unfolded between stablemate Dawn Two Dark (Kevin Switzer Jr.) and This Dudes Perfect (Drew Campbell).

Just past the :29.1 opening panel, Massive Speed took command following a swift early bid. Heading into the :59.4 halfmile marker Bill Childs pulled Race Me Celtic first-over but failed to advance into the 1:29.2 third panel.

Around the final turn, Dawn Two Dark tipped to the outside to challenge the accomplished pacesetter as the battlers stepped away from the rest of the field. With an impressive surge approaching the finish, Dawn Two Dark had the momentum but not the distance as the wire arrived and Massive Speed held on as a half-length winner in 1:58, which equalled his lifetime best. This Dudes Perfect finished third. 

A son of Dudes The Man out of Machmeter, Massive Speed was bred by Laurie Harding.

He paid $2.40 to win. 

In the other division, John Nason steered his own trainee Ridgecrest Dan to a pocket seat score.

When the wings folded, Heath Campbell blasted out to an early lead with Dudes Wanted Man while the Nason-trained and driven 1-5 favourite held his ground in the two-hole and forced No Guts No Glory (Switzer Jr.) into third position. Dudes Wanted Man controlled the tempo into a :29.1 opening panel, with Cheatin Fate (Case Jr.) flushing the cover of Bourbonstreetblues (McGwire Sowers) while the field passed the half in 1:00.3.

Around the five-eighths marker, Nason popped the deuce briefly, but was thwarted by the first over momentum of Bourbonstreetblues.  However, that first-up move was short-lived as the Sowers-driven colt called it a day and jammed up the rest of the field as they approached the 1:29.3 third stanza.

With Campbell and Nason leading pack with their respective charges, Nason had the pace around the turn and the speed through the stretch to overtake the pacesetter and score by 1-1/4 lengths in 1:58.3, a new lifetime best. No Guts No Glory finished third.

Bred by Jason Vafiades, the son of Dudes The Man-Magnetic Draw is owned by Bill Phipps of Yarmouth, Maine.

He paid $2.40 to win while recording his fourth career win in seven starts.

The Moxie Pacing Series final and consolation produced double-digit upsets with the common denominator in the pricey payoffs being driver Shawn Thayer and trainer Richard Allaby.  Dismissed at 14-1 odds, The Shining won the $11,486 Moxie final in 1:57.2 while 13-1 shot Real Thing took the $8,784 consolation in 1:58.2.

In other news, Bangor Raceway continues to build upon and exceed its record business numbers from 2024, a season which produced a record daily average handle of $88,985 USD and a record 12 days with handles in excess of $100,000 USD. 

Through 14 cards of the 2025 meet, Bangor’s per card average handle has experienced an 11 per cent growth over the same period in 2024. This substantial growth has been fuelled in part by six $100,000 USD handle days as opposed to three such occurrences over the same period in 2024.

“We are encouraged by the upward trend in handle this season,” said Thomas Smith, Bangor’s Racing Operations Manager. “Horse supply has been great which promotes full, competitive fields and makes Bangor an appealing place for bettors to spend their money.

"Another key factor is our new HD video and graphics package. The quality of our signal stacks up with some of the biggest and best tracks in the country and makes our product visually attractive to customers worldwide.” 

Looking ahead to Sunday, June 22, Bangor will host all the divisions of Maine Sire Stakes for three-year-old trotters. 

(With files from Maine Sire Stakes and Bangor Raceway)