Bangor Raceway will host the $400,000+(USD) Maine Sire Stakes finals with four three-year-old Pine Tree State-bred events on Saturday, Oct. 11.
Once again, trainer Marc Tardif will send a star with an unblemished record into the $101,174 USD Maine Sire Stakes final for three-year-old pacing colts and geldings.
Massive Speed has maintained a perfect record in the state of Maine and the son of Dudes The Man-Machmeter has been pegged as the 3-2 early morning line favourite in race two. Regular reinsman Aaron Hall gets the driving duties on the winner of 11 Maine races and more than $100,000.
Likely to be the heavy favourite by post time, Massive Speed will score from post three, where he is surrounded by three other Tardif trainees: Cheatin Fate (Post 2, 7-1, Kevin Switzer Jr.), Dawn Two Dark (Post 5, 9-2, Andy Harrington) and No Guts No Glory (Post 7, 12-1, Mike Stevenson).
Race five pits this year’s top male trotter, Libertys Wildcard, against last year’s freshman champion Whatawonder.
Tardif will send Libertys Wildcard into the $100,876 USD Maine Sire Stakes final for three-year-old colt and gelding trotters, with the winner of 11 of 12 races listed as the 4-5 early morning line favourite. The seasonal earner of more than $100,000 will be driven by Kevin Switzer Jr. The son of Noble Venture-Race Me Liberty will score from post two and sports a winning streak of five in a row.
Whatawonder has been chasing the aforementioned favourite all year and has finished second in his last four outings for driver Ken Watson and trainer Lisa Watson. The son of Whataworkout-Molly McGuire, who was a perfect 10-for-10 last year, is listed as 3-1 from post seven.
Race seven continues with the diagonal set, bringing divisional leader Barbella to face six other rivals in the $101,122 USD Maine Sire Stakes final for three-year-old trotting fillies.
The daughter of Whataworkout-Knella Bella has won 10 of 14 races this year with six-figure earnings. She will score from post three with driver Kevin Switzer Jr. up for trainer Ken Anderson and is the 4-5 favourite.
Ivan Davies’ Little Shot (Post 2) is the second choice at 4-1 and has been keeping up with the divisional standout throughout the season.
The $101,153 USD Maine Sire Stakes final for three-year-old pacing fillies is the concluding event for Pine Tree State-bred Standardbreds, led by 9-5 favourite Leanne Marie.
Trained and co-owned by Charlene ‘Sherry’ Cushing and driven by Mike Cushing, the daughter of Artistic Fella-Zoe Blue Chip has been nothing short of sensational in the waning months of the series. With five wins in her last six starts, the winner of more than $100,000 this year has post two and will likely utilize her snappy gate speed to control the tempo.
The Graffam’s Chasing Dudes (Post 5, 2-1) will surely give the favourite a run for her money as she has six wins of her own this year, to go with just over $86,000 in earnings.
The Maine Sire Stakes finals represent the culmination of years of hard work and dedication of behalf of dozens of industry stakeholders, including, but not limited to the owners, breeders, trainers, drivers and caretakers of these equine athletes. Not only do these horses represent a significant individual and collective investment in harness racing and agriculture in the state of Maine, but the peripheral revenue generated by the truck and trailer sales and maintenance, fuel suppliers, feed companies, hay producers, tack shops, blacksmiths, farm owners and racetracks that give them a place to compete, generously exceeds seven figures annually.
The $25,000 USD renewal of the Fred Nichols Memorial Invitational, Bangor’s marquee event of the season, will also be held on Saturday.
A stellar field of invitees has been assembled for the Nichols by race secretary Karen Fagliarone, starring perhaps, the Maine-bred wunderkind, Two Fold Cold, who trucks back up to Bangor on Saturday fresh off his recent 1:48.2 divisional track record performance at Plainridge Park.
That remarkable rumble at the Ridge now pegs Two Fold Cold as the fastest Maine-bred in the history of the sport, adding to his growing resume of accolades which include, an undefeated Maine Sire Stakes sophomore championship season; a divisional track record as a three-year-old at Bangor Raceway; a track record 1:53.1 win in this season’s $34,722 Pine Tree Invitational at First Tracks Cumberland; a 1:55 romp in August’s $20,548 Hight Invitational at Skowhegan; and a tight second-place finish in the 2025 edition of the $102,740 Beckwith Memorial at Plainridge. Trained by Kelly Case for owner Marc Tardif, the four-year-old son of Deuce Seelster now boasts 24 lifetime wins and a career bankroll of $399,650. He has been installed as the 3-2 morning line favourite and will score from post five with David Ingraham in his customary drivers seat.
Chief to contend will be Tenzing Bromac N, who girds for battle off a late September 1:53.3 win in Open competition at the Cumberland Fair. A relative newcomer stateside, the New Zealand-bred son of Bettors Delight made his first state-of-Maine start an eye-popping one, soaring around the Windsor Fair oval in an impressive 1:52.2, while claiming top honours in the $20,548 Windsor Fair Invitational during Labour Day weekend. Trained by Heidi Cushing for owners Ron Cushing and Anthony Sywyk, Tenzing Bromac N will score from post four as the co-second favourite on the morning line at 2-1 odds, with co-owner Ron Cushing driving.
Also tabbed at 2-1 by the morning line maker, Heinikin Bythebay will factor prominently from post number two. A Delaware Standardbred Breeders Fund Stakes champion both as a two-and-three-year-old, the homebred son of Southwind Lynx boasts consecutive wins in Fryeburg Fair’s $20,548 Mountain Skipper Invitational in both 2024 and 2025, timed in an imposing 1:54.1 and 1:54, respectively, over the fairground oval. Trained by Kevin Switzer for KDK Standardbreds, Heinikin Bythebay will make his second Nichols appearance with Kevin Switzer Jr. in the sulky, having finished a fast-closing second to So Rock N Roll’s divisional track record 1:53 performance in 2024.
The races on Championship Saturday will be broadcast live on the vast radio and online networks of MixMaineMedia. The festivities and broadcast will be emceed by local radio personality, Mike Violette, who will be conducting the popular harness racing trivia segments following every race, affording fans the opportunity to win Bangor Raceway betting vouchers and branded Hollywood Casino and Raceway merchandise.
Live harness racing will continue on Sunday, Oct. 12 with a 12:10 p.m. post time, and after opening week, will be featured on a three-day-per-week schedule in October with 3 p.m. post times for the Wednesday twilight cards and with 12:10 p.m. starting times for the Saturday and Sunday matinees.
(With files from Maine Sire Stakes & Bangor Raceway, photo Massive Speed)