Rodeo Drive Deo will travel to MGM Northfield Park on Saturday, Oct. 11, where the recently crowned Jugette winner will face eight other talented fillies in the $125,000 USD Courageous Lady (Grade 3). The race is an invitational for three-year-old filly pacers.

Rodeo Drive Deo has built a strong resume during her sophomore campaign with six wins in 16 starts. Following a 1:51.2 victory in the Home Grown at The Meadowlands on Apr. 26, her connections sent her to Woodbine Mohawk Park to race in the Grade 1 $390,000 Fan Hanover. She rebounded in the final of that event after a tough trip in the elimination, rallying late down the stretch and finishing a game second to arch-rival Miki And Minnie. Rodeo Drive Deo, owned by Burke Racing Stable LLC, Weaver Bruscemi LLC, Beasty LLC and J&T Silva- Purnel & Libby, was second in her $416,667 Pennsylvania Sire Stakes final at The Meadows, then shipped to Delaware, Ohio, for the Grade 1 $388,889 Jugette. There, she won both her elimination (1:51) and the final (1:50.1).

In last week’s $334,722 Glen Garnsey Memorial at The Red Mile, she was parked to a :53.4 half and tired late in the mile. She faded to eighth.

“We had a tough trip in the Garnsey," said Ron Burke, who trains the Captaintreacherous-Miss L A filly. "She came out of the race really well and I expect her to be better on Saturday."

Rodeo Drive Deo will have regular pilot David Miller in the sulky as she challenges some familiar competition and some new faces, who are taking their first crack at Grand Circuit company.

Ohio Sires Stakes champion Prolific Fire has her eyes set on a Grand Circuit prize. She is in the midst of a strong season, also highlighted by a victory in the Ohio Breeders Championship at the Delaware County Fair on Sept. 18. The Catch The Fire-Alexas Jewel filly is three-for-14 as a sophomore. She is owned by Greg Luther Racing LLC and trained by Todd Luther.

Her connections have watched their talented filly grow throughout the year and believe she is ready for the challenge on Saturday.

“She started training better after the last leg of the Sires Stakes, and that’s when I noticed her attitude start to change for the better in the barn,” said Todd Luther.

Also competing on Saturday are Pennsylvania Stallion Series final runner-up Sammy Jo Hanover, Nadia Lobell champion Odds On Chesapeake, Adioo Volo winner Time Of The Season, New York Sire Stakes standout Fansville, New Jersey Classic champion Worklifebalance, Keystone Classic division winner Pilar Hanover and stakes winner Papi Grad.

“We’re very pleased to get such a strong and full field of fillies, including the Jugette champion, to highlight our final stakes card of 2025,” said Dave Bianconi, Northfield Park’s Director of Racing.

The full field for the Courageous Lady is below.

$125,000 USD Courageous Lady (Grade 3)
Post - Horse - Driver - Trainer - Morning Line Odds
1. Sammy Jo Hanover - Dan Noble - Scott Di Domenico - 10-1
2. Odds On Chesapeake - Ronnie Wrenn Jr. - Virgil Morgan Jr. - 7-2
3. Time Of The Season - Aaron Merriman - Tim Twaddle - 4-1
4. Prolific Fire - Austin Hanners - Todd Luther - 6-1
5. Rodeo Drive Deo - David Miller - Ron Burke - 2-1
6. Fansville - Jack Pelling - Joe Bongiorno - 8-1
7. Worklifebalance - Aaron Merriman - Noel Daley - 15-1
8. Pilar Hanover - TBA - Jim King Jr. - 20-1
9. Papi Grad - Dan Noble - Steve Carter - 12-1
AE. Our Honor Defend - Case Bateson - Scott Betts 

The Courageous Lady is one of nine stakes races on the power-packed 15-race program. The evening also features eight $50,000 USD Ohio Fairs Championships and a pair of paces with all female drivers.

Spend The Prize (Dan Noble) headlines the four divisions of trotters as the top point-earner this season. The Rosy Weaver trainee sits atop the OFC sophomore colt trot standings with 753.5 points and is the slight morning line favourite in her race on Saturday at 5-2. The Enterprise gelding has 15 wins in 21 seasonal starts and drew the seventh post position in the eight-horse field. He owns a lifetime mark of 1:56.1. Full Moon Howl (Jason Beattie), who is second in the standings with 548.5 points, is the 3-1 second choice and will leave from post four. Trained by Jessica Smith, the Full Count gelding has 12 wins in 21 starts this season. His lifetime best is 1:56.1. Sitting third in the standings, Silverton (Emanuel Miller) will leave from post two.

Eckert Hill Brady (Ronnie Wrenn Jr.) is the 6-5 morning line favourite in the freshman colt trot division. The divisional leader in the OFC standings with 434 points, the Weaver-trained In Range gelding has hit the board in 13 of 15 seasonal starts with nine victories. He owns a lifetime mark of 2:01.2 and is coming off a third-place finish in the Buckeye Stallion Series finals. He will leave from post five alongside 5-2 second choice Dublins Sidney (Noble) in post four. Dublins Sidney is a What The Hill colt trained by Brian Georges. He has four wins and six seconds in 14 starts on the year. Eighth in the OFC standings, he has a lifetime best of 1:57. The second- and third-place horses in the standings, Mogul Maverick (Miller) and MJs Pegs Prodigy (Charles Bolen), will leave from post seven and one, respectively.

In the sophomore filly trot division, Countonluna, driven by trainer Daren Harvey, is the 5-2 early favourite. The Full Count filly has eight wins in 18 starts this year. She has won four of her past five starts and owns a lifetime best of 1:58.3. She is seventh in the OFC standings and will leave from post four. I Bee Cream (Wrenn Jr.), the 3-1 second choice, has 10 wins in 23 seasonal starts. The De La Creme filly has a lifetime best of 1:56.3. Trained by Charles Vigneron, she enters Saturday having won four of her past six starts and is fourth in the standings. The top three in the standings — Dublins Martini (Braiden Rhoades), Susnritz (Miller) and Strike A Pose (Luke Hanners) — drew posts three, eight and one, respectively.

Trained and driven by Hank LeVan, Hangtighthoney L is the 8-5 morning line favourite in the division for freshman filly trotters and will leave from the rail. The In Range filly is coming off a sixth-place finish in the Buckeye Stallion Series finals and has hit the board in 14 of 17 starts in 2025 with 10 wins. Fourth in the OFC standings, she owns a lifetime mark of 1:58.1. Lynn Range (Miller), the 2-1 second choice, drew post position six. A winner in five of her past six starts, the In Range filly trained by Herman Hagerman. She is sixth in the standings and has nine wins and one second in 12 starts this year. Her lifetime best is 1:59.2. The top three horses in the standings — Supreme Dance (Wrenn Jr.), Jasmines Diamond (Justin Irvine) and Tango L (Louis LeVan) — will leave from post four, two and seven, respectively.

Among pacers, Clevelandtoprookie (Noble) was the top point-earner in the OFC standings this season and is the 8-5 second choice in the sophomore colt pace division behind narrow morning line favourite Catch The Express (Wrenn Jr.) at 3-2. Eighth in the point standings, Catch The Express drew post five. The Catch The Fire gelding has eight wins in seven seasonal starts, including a string of four straight victories from Aug. 26 to Sept. 18. In his last time on the track, the Cory Deyermand trainee finished sixth in the Buckeye Stallion Series consolation. He owns a lifetime mark of 1:53.3. Trained by Brian Georges, Clevelandtoprookie will leave from post two. A Catch The Fire gelding, he amassed 779 points to lead all pacers this season. He has hit the board in 23 of 28 starts in 2025 with 10 wins and owns a lifetime mark of 1:56.2. Eddie Nine Toes (Hank LeVan) and Bounding Delight (Emanuel Miller), who finished second and third in the standings, will leave from post eight and six, respectively, in the eight-horse field.

In the freshman colt pace division, Fired Up Henry L (LeVan) is the 5-2 early favourite. Fifth in the OFC standings, the Catch The Fire gelding has hit the board in 14 of 19 starts this season with seven wins. Trained by LeVan, he owns a lifetime mark of 1:58 and will leave from post three. I Am The Sea (Noble) and Worknupalather (Nick Clegg) share co-second choice honours at 7-2. I Am The Sea sits atop the standings with 671 points while Worknupalather is second with 638. Leaving from post four, I Am The Sea has hit the board in 20 of 27 starts this season with eight wins. He is a Downbytheseaside gelding trained by Herman Hagerman with a lifetime mark of 1:58.2. The Betty Clegg-trained Worknupalather will leave from the rail. A Lather Up gelding, he has seven victories in 27 starts this year. His lifetime best is 2:01.1. Pumpkin Skin (Braiden Rhoades), who is third in the standings, will leave from post seven.

Sophomore filly pace points leader Legendary L opened as the heavy 6-5 favourite in her division. Trained and driven by LeVan, the Bit Of A Legend N filly compiled 698 points this season and will leave from post two. She has 15 victories in 24 starts on the year and a lifetime mark of 1:52. She has won four of her past six starts and is coming off a fourth-place finish in the Buckeye Stallions Series final. Maddies Delite (Wrenn Jr.) is the second choice at 7-2 and will leave from post six. The Lather Up filly and Steve Carter trainee has hit the board in 17 of 20 seasonal starts with 11 wins and six seconds. She is second in the standings with 594 points and has a lifetime best of 1:53.4. Third in the standings, Sectionline Flame (Miller) will leave from post five.

In the freshman filly pace division, Racing Artist (Aaron Merriman) will leave from the far outside as the 2-1 morning line favourite. Ninth in the OFC standings, she has hit the board in all 12 seasonal starts with seven wins. Bill Webb trains the Racing Hill filly, who owns a lifetime mark of 1:57.4. VH Goldie (David Young II) is the 5-2 second choice. The Tim Vanhorn trainee has 10 wins and four seconds in 16 starts this season. The Dancin Yankee filly is second in the OFC standings with 562 points and has a lifetime best of 1:57.3. Juliet Capulet, who is on top of the standings with 660 points, raced at Lancaster on Wednesday and is not entered. Third-place Delta Lady (Wrenn Jr.) will leave from post five.

The Ohio Harness Horsemen’s Association (OHHA) will live stream the Ohio Fairs Championship as part of its “Saturday Night at the Races” program presented by The Ohio State University Veterinary Medical Center and sponsored by Dublin Valley Farms, Hickory Lane Farm, Midland Acres and North American Standardbred Sale. Coverage of the eight finals will begin at 6:15 p.m. on the OHHA YouTube channel @harnessracingoh and Facebook page as well as harnessracingohio.com.

From a wagering standpoint, there will be a pair of $20,000 estimated Pick-4 pools in races eight and 11. Both wagers feature a $1 minimum and a low 14 per cent takeout.

Extra incentives for patrons attending on Saturday include the Big Top Prize Drawings taking place from 6-9 p.m. Guests may begin entering their names at 5 p.m. Six names drawn each hour will have a chance to play one of the three Big Top Games. The popular Summerfest Grille Tent will be open on Saturday from 6-9 p.m. Lady Luck’s Clubhouse will be open on Saturday night, featuring a buffet for $27.95 USD. For reservations, contact 330-467-4101.

Post time on Saturday is 6 p.m.

(With files from Northfield Park & OHHA)