Trainer Ron Burke went two-for-two in the first round of the MGM Grand Prix Trotting Series on Friday night, Oct. 11 at MGM Yonkers Raceway, taking the $101,351 divisions with the record-setting Its Academic and Chapercraz.
Its Academic, driven by Jason Bartlett, lowered the track record for an older trotting stallion to 1:53.1 in his triumph. Starting from the outside post seven, Its Academic got to the top before the :27.4 quarter, was unchallenged through middle-half stations of :57 and 1:25.1, and came home in 28 seconds to defeat pocket-sitter Take All Comers (Jordan Stratton) by a length and a half. Ghostly Casper (Pat Lachance) was third.
The winning time of 1:53.1 knocked two-fifths of a second off the previous mark of 1:53.3 set by Major Athens back on June 25, 2016.
A seven-year-old Uncle Peter stallion owned by Brad Grant of Milton, Ont., Its Academic won for the 33rd time in his career and has now earned more than $2.8 million. The Dan Patch Award winner as top older male trotter a year ago, Its Academic paid $2.70 to win as the 1-5 favourite and was atop a $5.80 exacta and a $22.20 trifecta.
In the second split, Chapercraz and George Brennan were in front through stations of :27.4, 57.3 and 1:26.2, and while several closers made up ground on Chapercraz through the stretch drive, he was able to hold them all off to the finish line, winning by a head in 1:56.1. Ari Ferrari J (Bartlett), who was two-wide throughout but on cover, surged three-wide to the wire to get second and Bestfriend Volo (Matt Kakaley), who had space on the inside in the lane from the pocket, checked in third.
Chapercraz is a four-year-old gelding by Crazy Wow with seven career wins and more than $1.1 million in earnings. He is owned by Burke Racing Stable, Weaver Bruscemi and Phil Collura. Chapercraz returned $5.40 to win as the 8-5 favourite and led a $28.80 exacta and a $165.50 trifecta.
Rounds two and three of the MGM Grand Prix Trotting Series are scheduled for Nov. 1 and Nov. 8, with the $250,000 USD final on Nov. 15. The third leg and the final will be conducted at the distance of a mile and a sixteenth.
(With files from Yonkers Raceway; Photo of Its Academic from a previous win)