Al Papi stormed from off the speed to win the $521,429 Grade 2 Tattersalls Pace for three-year-old pacing males on closing day Saturday, Oct. 10 at The Red Mile, pushing trainer Ron Burke past the $400 million USD mark in career earnings.

Driver Yannick Gingras got away sixth with Al Papi out of post two as stablemate Ubrute (Jason Bartlett) barrelled out of post nine to grab the lead from Sea Bistro Hanover (Todd McCarthy) past a :27.3 first quarter. Melillo (Ronnie Wrenn Jr.), another Burke trainee, soon angled off the cones from fourth in the backstretch, prompting McCarthy to vacate the pocket with Sea Bistro Hanover while forcing Melillo three-wide.

Sea Bistro Hanover looped to a brief lead and relinquished command to Melillo passing a :54.1 half while Sweet Lovin Lou (Scott Zeron) cruised uncovered on the rim to the last turn with Al Papi perched on his cover. Sweet Lovin Lou reeled in Melillo spinning by three-quarters in 1:21.3 to take a narrow lead as Gingras launched Al Papi outside and gathered the strongest momentum late. Al Papi dashed to the front and pulled clear in the closing strides to post a 1:50.2 win over a track rated “good” with Sweet Lovin Lou taking second, beaten 2-1/2 lengths. Melillo held third.

“Once they were going a little bit crazy to the half, Yannick was right in the right spot,” Ron Burke said after the race. “Really, this colt’s game might be better off those trips, and it’s never worked out that way for him, so we’re really happy for him.”

Al Papi, a homebred colt for Burke Racing Stable LLC, J&T Silva-Purnel & Libby, Larry Karr and Weaver Bruscemi LLC, has now won five races from 15 starts this season and nine races from 26 starts in his career, banking $1,886,081 in earnings. The son of Papi Rob Hanover, out of Yankee Cruiser mare and Burke graduate Baron Remy, helped thrust the conditioner past $400 million USD in career earnings with the win, with Burke becoming the first trainer to do so.

“I’m very proud of it; it’s very hard,” said Burke, who has led all trainers in seasonal earnings for 18 of the last 25 years. “It takes a lot of us, it takes a lot of years. I used to think [$]500 [million USD] was a slam dunk, but now I’m thinking that’s five more years at this pace and I don’t know. It’s a lot.”

Sent off as the third choice in the betting, Al Papi paid $8.18 to win.

After nailing an upset on Miss Jum Jabber in a Grade 3 Bluegrass Stakes division last week, Hope Hill upped the score with a 1:51.1 victory in the $302,857 Grade 2 Glen Garnsey Memorial, sponsored by Diamond Creek Farm, for three-year-old filly pacers.

Leaving from post two, driver Dexter Dunn landed into third with Hope Hill as longshot Barbuda Belle (Ronnie Wrenn Jr.) lunged for the front with stablemate Im A Lou Lou (Tim Tetrick) in pursuit. Once Im A Lou Lou took over the lead, Dunn abandoned his seat at the pylons and brushed for the top through a :28.3 first quarter while odds-on favourite Miss Jum Jabber (Andy McCarthy) tracked from fourth. Hope Hill upped the tempo in the backstretch as the field split into two packs past a :56.2 half, at which point McCarthy began to march Miss Jum Jabber up the rim to challenge for the lead. Miss Jum Jabber drew alongside Hope Hill to three-quarters in 1:23.4, but Hope Hill stayed resilient under pressure all through the stretch and turned away Miss Jum Jabber to win by three-quarters of a length. Barbuda Belle took third at 149-1.

“Last year she turned out to be a really good filly,” said Tom Hill, owner and breeder of Hope Hill, after the race. “Over the winter she strengthened up and she just got better and better. I was looking forward to this race because last week she won from behind and so she got a good trip. She won from the front today, so there were no excuses today.”

Petter Engblom trains Hope Hill, a seven-time winner from 14 starts this season and an 11-time winner from 23 starts in her career with $710,848 in purses. The daughter of Papi Rob Hanover, out of the Bettors Delight mare Ruth Hill, paid $7.26 to win.

Stalwart pacers Prince Hal Hanover and Twin B Joe Fresh clinched victories in their respective Grade 3 Allerage Farms divisions.

Prince Hal Hanover pounced from the "good" track off a pocket ride to clinch a 1:49 victory in the $207,143 Allerage for male pacers, sponsored by Jeff & Paula Gural.

Driver Todd McCarthy fired Prince Hal Hanover for the front out of post six alongside even-money favourite Ken Hanover (Tim Tetrick) and yielded control to that rival moving for a :27.2 first quarter. Ken Hanover coasted down the backstretch to a :53.3 half and continued on a full-throttled lead through the turn to three-quarters in 1:20.3. Prince Hal Hanover angled from the inside trip to attack the tiring leader in the lane, surged to the top and kept digging to the finish to win by a head. Coaches Corner (Andy McCarthy) rallied from a first-up bid for second. Captain Arturovico (Dexter Dunn) flew from last for third.

“He’s just a super horse,” Todd McCarthy said after the race. “He gives it all he’s got, and that was just a great performance today on this track. We were following the right one and we had open daylight down the lane. It’s tricky conditions today—it’s obviously pretty heavy rain and really windy, so it can be tough for a lot of horses to go forward in that. But he’s just so hearty, this guy. He just does it every time. It felt like a pretty long stretch today, but he’s all class.”

Dr. Ian Moore trains Prince Hal Hanover for owner Prince Hal Hanover Stable. The four-year-old son of Captaintreacherous, out of the Shadow Play stakes-winning mare Percy Bluechip, won for the sixth time from 17 starts this season and for the 16th time from 48 starts in his career, raising his earnings to $2,454,936. He paid $6.26 to win.

Twin B Joe Fresh rallied from last to first with a :52 back half to score back-to-back victories in the $95,714 Allerage for pacing mares, winning this edition in 1:49.4 before the track was downgraded from "fast."

Dexter Dunn eased to last in the quintet after Champagne Room (Ronnie Wrenn Jr.) bolted for the front to her outside leaving the gate. Champagne Room crossed over to lead through the first turn and pocketed pylon-starter Louies Girl N (Jason Bartlett), but Bartlett swiftly circled Louies Girl N back towards the top nearing a :28.3 first quarter. Twin B Joe Fresh remained last in the backstretch as the tempo stayed tepid to a :56.4 half, though Dunn initiated a bid at the top of the far turn and rushed forward to press Louies Girl N to three-quarters in 1:24. Louies Girl N caved to the challenge spinning for home, and Twin B Joe Fresh motored for the finish to keep her competition behind for a length victory. Champagne Room snatched second from Louies Girl N in third.

Chris Ryder trains Twin B Joe Fresh and co-owns the six-year-old Roll With Joe mare, out of Captaintreacherous mare Fresh Breeze, with Dunn, Peter Trebotica and Barry Spak. The 2024 U.S. Horse of the Year has won five races from 12 starts this season and 41 races from 61 starts in her career, accruing $4,001,792 in earnings.

“She does what she does, and she never ceases to amaze us, really,” Ryder said. “She showed it today. She’s just been wonderful. We’re going to race through the Breeders Crown and [FanDuel Championships], and we’ll see how it goes. She’s done enough; she’s done a lot [but] nothing’s set in stone.”

Twin B Joe Fresh paid $2.22 to win.

Ake Svanstedt trainee Magic Punk and Marcus Melander pupil Neighver Punt both returned from defeat in the Kentucky Futurity last week to win in their respective $162,857 divisions of the Grade 3 Bluegrass Stakes for three-year-old trotting males.

Magic Punk pushed first-over through the last turn and slid to the front late for a 1:52 victory in the first Bluegrass division.

It Could Be Worse (Tim Tetrick) broke stride behind the gate, leaving Requiem (Andy McCarthy) to hustle out of post five for an uncontested lead to a tepid :28 first quarter while Magic Punk (Todd McCarthy) planted into fifth. The field strolled single file up the backside to a :55.4 half but broke rank once Magic Punk edged outside for an attack to the final turn. Magic Punk marched up the rim to match strides with Requiem by three-quarters in 1:24.1 before disposing of that rival in the lane and coasting to the finish a winner by 1-1/4 lengths. Seven Grand (Ake Svanstedt) rallied from a pocket trip for second with Lindy Living (Dexter Dunn) kicking from second-over for third.

“He had a good day today,” said Sarah Svanstedt of Team Svanstedt. “He has been a little bit tricky this season. When you have him on the happy days, he’s doing what he’s doing today. So I’m very happy.”

Rebounding from a break in stride when leaving the gate in the Kentucky Futurity, Magic Punk collected his fourth win from 13 starts this season and his eighth victory from 21 starts in his career, accruing $724,338 for owner Magic Punk Inc. The colt by Wishing Stone, out of the Explosive Matter mare I D Entity No, paid $4.96 to win.

Neighver Punt mounted a similar uncovered push up the rim to take the other Bluegrass division for sophomore trotting colts in a 1:52.4 mile.

Dunn settled Neighver Punt into third while Untouchable As (Tony Hall) crossed over from the outermost draw in the septet to lead the field by a :28.1 first quarter. Neighver Punt began his challenge just after a :56.1 half and loomed outside through the turn before spurting by Untouchable As after three-quarters in 1:24.4. Neighver Punt powered through the stretch while keeping a late bid from 98-1 shot Alpha Blue Chip (Scott Zeron) at bay to win by a half-length. Untouchable As held third.

“He actually raced really well last week,” Marcus Melander said about Neighver Punt’s fifth-place finish in the Kentucky Futurity. “He’s been racing good all year—maybe just slightly under the best, best ones, but he’s always right there and he raced great today again.”

Courant Inc. owns Neighver Punt, a now-four-time winner from 13 starts this season and a five-time winner from 22 starts in his career with $458,604 banked. The colt by Bar Hopping, out of the Donato Hanover mare Twice Is Right, returned $4.94 to win.

Emmas Mystery Ccl bolted off a ground-saving trip to a lifetime-best 1:51.4 victory in the $122,547 first filly division of the Bluegrass Stakes.

Leaving from the pylon post, Emmas Mystery Ccl eased into fifth while a three-wide battle ensued for the lead to a :28.1 first quarter. Leading Lady (Yannick Gingras) pushed from between horses to take the lead from Whatarace Hanover (Todd McCarthy) before Laurens Chapter (Niko Karna) brushed from the three-wide path to the lead heading to a :55.2 half. Southwind Chaska (Tim Tetrick) began floating off the pylons from fourth moving for the final turn and flushed Whatarace Hanover, which prompted Gingras to pull Leading Lady from the pocket and left a gap for Emmas Mystery Ccl to shoot through at the inside.

Leading Lady looped by Laurens Chapter while Whatarace Hanover pressed first-over to three-quarters in 1:23.4, but Andy McCarthy found clearance to fan Emmas Mystery Ccl from the cones to the centre of the track straightening for home. Emmas Mystery Ccl gathered strong momentum for the finish and swept by tiring Leading Lady late to win under wraps by 1-1/2 lengths. Whatarace Hanover grabbed second from Leading Lady.

Noel Daley trains Emmas Mystery Ccl for owner Winning Key Inc. The filly by Muscle Hill, out of stakes-winning Donato Hanover mare Mistery Woman, won her second race from 11 starts this season and her sixth race from 20 starts in her career, pushing her bankroll to $461,531. She paid $15.14 to win.

Pylon-starter Godusa came up the pylons in a seven-wide charge to the finish to land the spoils in the $121,119 second filly Bluegrass dash in a 1:54.1 mile.

Jason Bartlett situated Godusa into third as Naked And Famous (Todd McCarthy) battled Sparks (Yannick Gingras) for the lead to a :28.3 first quarter. Sparks cleared to command into the backstretch, but McCarthy swung Naked And Famous out of the pocket and slid back to the lead while the tempo remained steady to a :57.1 half.

Crossover (Dexter Dunn) launched an uncovered bid out of fifth to the far turn and ground forward as Sparks crept out of the pocket passing three-quarters in 1:25.2. The field swarmed Naked And Famous as she tired and drifted into the stretch, giving Bartlett racetrack to dart Godusa through and snatch the lead. Godusa held firmly in the stampede to the finish to win by a half-length over 38-1 shot All Time Trot S (Ake Svanstedt), who weaved from a ground-saving trip to take second. R Ro (Andy Miller) recovered from a break at the start to rally from last and widest on the track for third.

“She’s been racing well in Ohio all year and really raced well here in Kentucky,” winning trainer Nancy Takter said after the race. “She’s maybe just a step below the absolute best fillies, but she raced super in the Kentucky [Championship Series] final and she’s definitely on the upswing.”

A filly by Ready For Moni out of Trixton mare Behold The Dream, Godusa has now won three races from 12 starts this season and five races from 20 starts in her career, raising her earnings to $375,343 for owners E Five Racing and John Fielding. The win price was $27.56.

Kentucky Filly Futurity consolation winner Isabella Bi returned for another Red Mile victory with a front-stepping 1:52.2 win in the $121,119 final filly division of the Bluegrass.

Trainer-driver Ake Svanstedt sent Isabella Bi forward out of post seven and took control from Joyofmylife As (Tony Hall) heading for a :29 first quarter. Isabella Bi accelerated in the backstretch to a :56.1 half and maintained her speed to three-quarters in 1:24 in progress to a snug 1-3/4-length victory. Joyofmylife As gave pursuit for second with Jailbird Jog (Anthony MacDonald) kicking from well back for third.

Isabella Bi competes for owners Ake Svanstedt Inc., Joe Sbrocco & JAF Racing, Little E LLC and Mr. Lars Olsson. The filly by Tactical Landing, out of the Ready Cash mare Call Me Bi It, has now won three races from 12 starts this season and four races from 19 starts in her career, growing her bankroll to $309,072. She paid $4.84 to win.

The Bluegrass divisions were sponsored by the Captain Corey Syndicate, Greenshoe Syndicate, Tactical Landing and Karl Syndicates, Hanover Shoe Farms, Wiesman Farms and the Harness Horse Youth Foundation’s 50th anniversary.

During the closing-day card, The Red Mile honoured the 2026 season’s leading driver Dunn and leading trainer Marcus Melander. Dunn led all drivers in wins with 88 victories and nearly $3 million USD in purses while Andy McCarthy finished second in the standings with 53 wins and Tim Tetrick tied for third alongside Todd McCarthy with 47 wins.

“It feels great. I absolutely love racing here,” said Dunn, who also currently leads all drivers in North America in purse earnings this season. “It’s a bittersweet day, this day, because it’s our last day for the year. But I had great support down here and drove some great horses. I’ve been very lucky.”

Melander topped the training ranks with 46 victories and more than $2.1 million USD in purses. Carter Pinske finished second among trainers with 32 victories with Brett Pelling third at 28 wins.

“This season’s been great, obviously,” said Marcus Melander, currently second in North America in seasonal purse earnings behind Burke. “We invested in our farm here three years ago and we race a lot here. It’s a great program and perfect track, so I’m very happy about [this title]. Hopefully we can continue here these last couple of weeks.”

(The Red Mile)