Thomas Pontone has had plenty of reasons to smile this year, and his ownership involvement with superstar trotter Muscle Hill is only part of the reason
. In fact, if not for the exploits of the three-year-old trotter, the re-emergence of older pacer Shark Gesture might dominate Pontone’s conversations.
Shark Gesture leads all older pacers in earnings this season, with $907,695 (US). His wins include the $688,000 William R. Haughton Memorial, the $630,200 Canadian Pacing Derby and the $210,000 Graduate. He hopes to add the $180,000 Allerage Farms Pace on Saturday at the Red Mile in Lexington.
Last weekend, Shark Gesture won the lone Allerage elimination race, beating two-time defending division champion Mister Big by three-quarters of a length in 1:49.2.
“It’s sad when Shark Gesture has a year like he’s having, and all I talk about is Muscle Hill,” said Pontone, who owns Shark Gesture with his father, Louis, and Gerald and Norman Smiley.
“We were hoping he would make a couple hundred-thousand dollars this year; just perform well. Maybe lower his mark. If you told me at the beginning of the year he was going to win the Haughton and the Graduate and the Canadian Pacing Derby, I would have said you’re crazy.”
Shark Gesture retired to stud duty after being injured in 2007. After a brief stallion career, the owners decided to bring back Shark Gesture to the races. Since his return in December 2008 he has won seven of 29 starts. He has been more successful since April, with six wins and three second-place finishes in 15 races.
“I give a hundred percent of the credit to Norm Smiley. It was his suggestion to [bring back Shark Gesture] and we were all in agreement,” Pontone said. “He didn’t have a great year standing. He didn’t want to retire; he still had it in him to race. We saw that after the first year in the breeding shed.
“It took him a while to get back to his racing form. After the first eight to 10 starts we were questioning our decision, but after a while he gave us the right answer.”
Shark Gesture could make a strong case for divisional honours with a win in the Allerage. The event’s field includes Mister Big, who ranks No. 2 among all pacers in history in purses, with $3.87 million, and won the Ben Franklin Pace this season with a world-record-equaling effort; Art Official, who was second in the Franklin; Won The West, who won the Breeders Crown; and Shadow Play, who won the U.S. Pacing Championship.
The Red Mile should feel like home for Shark Gesture. His elimination victory was his seventh career triumph in Lexington and he has never finished worse than second in 11 starts there.
“I would think he should get division honours even if he doesn’t win it. But [winning] would definitely help,” Pontone said. “There’s really no dominant player out there. That’s good. It shows the competition was tight.”
For his career, Shark Gesture has won 20 of 63 races and earned $1.87 million. There has never been any doubting Shark Gesture’s toughness. As a three-year-old, he won the Breeders Crown after being involved in an accident a week earlier in his elimination.
“I think he’s truly amazing,” Pontone said. “After his Breeders Crown elimination, when we didn’t know if he was alive or dead, to come back the next week with staples in his face and win was amazing. We knew he was a tough horse. He’s proving it again this year. He gets tougher every week.”
Following is the Allerage Farms Pace field in the order of finish from the elim, with driver and trainer:
1. Shark Gesture, George Brennan, Ray Remmen
2. Mister Big, Brian Sears, Virgil Morgan, Jr.
3. Art Official, Ron Pierce, Joe Seekman
4. Won The West, Jim Morrill, Jr., Ron Burke
5. Shadow Play, David Miller, Ian Moore
6. Mucho Sleazy, Dave Palone, Paul Stafford
7. Southwestern Dream, John Campbell, Bruce Saunders
8. Eagle Luck, Tim Tetrick, Gregg McNair
9. War Boots, Ray Paver, Paver
10. Blue Claw, Mike Lachance, Peter Foley.
This story courtesy of Harness Racing Communications, a division of the U.S. Trotting Association. For more information, visit www.ustrotting.com.