Breeders Crown winners Buck I St Pat, Enough Talk, Won The West and Put On A Show as well as Meadowlands Pace champ One More Laugh were among the horses entered in Saturday’s American-National Stakes
for trotters and pacers at Balmoral Park near Chicago.
Won The West is the No. 2-ranked horse in harness racing’s Top 10 poll and comes to the $156,000 American-National for older pacers off a win in the $125,000 Indiana Pacing Derby last weekend at Indiana Downs. Won The West, driven by Ricky Macomber, Jr., beat Bettor Sweet by 1-1/4 lengths in 1:50.1 and has won seven of 18 races this year and earned $1.3 million.
He has won 33 of 88 career races and $3.4 million. With last week’s triumph, he moved past Boulder Creek for No. 4 in career earnings for all pacers in history. Ahead are Gallo Blue Chip ($4.2 million), Mister Big ($4.14 million) and Eternal Camnation ($4.12 million). Won The West has won three American-National titles in his career, picking up the first as a three-year-old in 2007 and winning the older pacing division the last two seasons.
“West was very good,” trainer Ron Burke said. “I was surprised. He wasn’t very good training and I thought he was coming into the week dull. But Ricky gave him a great drive; he likes that first-up grind. I would suspect he’ll be even better this week.”
Indiana Pacing Derby runner-up Bettor Sweet is also part of the American-National field, along with Dali, Atochia, Thisbigdogwilfight, Hypnotic Blue Chip and Annieswesterncard.
Buck I St Pat and Enough Talk, who each won a Breeders Crown last month at Mohegan Sun at Pocono Downs, will face off in the American-National for older trotters. Buck I St Pat, driven by Illinois native Tim Tetrick, won the Breeders Crown Mare Trot while Enough Talk claimed the Breeders Crown Open Trot.
Also in the American-National field are Southwind Wasabi, ABC Mercedes, and Armbro Chronicle. Absent is Lucky Jim, who was turned out in order to prepare for next season’s campaign.
“I wouldn’t have said this before, but I think I would have raced against (Lucky Jim),” said Burke, who trains Buck I St Pat. “I would have taken a shot. She’s just really, really good right now. The thing about Lucky Jim, he’s the only horse I’ve ever seen pass her off the same trip. They both got equal trips at Vernon (in the Credit Winner) and he went right by her.
“She’s career sharp. This will be our last chance to race her this year. I’m just real happy with her and that’s Timmy’s home. We’ve done real well in the American-Nationals the last couple years.”
One More Laugh, also driven by Tetrick, is among nine horses in the $245,000 American-National for three-year-old male pacers. One More Laugh is coming off a fifth-place finish in the Messenger Stakes last weekend at Yonkers Raceway. He was second to Rock N Roll Heaven in the Tattersalls Stakes in his previous outing.
Allthatgltrsisgold, who won the $250,000 Monument Circle for three-year-old male pacers last weekend at Indiana Downs, also is in the race, along with Monument Circle runner-up Iam Bonasera, and Confederation Cup winner Aracache Hanover.
Put On A Show, who is No. 3 in the Top 10 poll, is among eight horses in the $191,000 American-National for three-year-old filly pacers. She has won 12 of 15 races this year, including the Breeders Crown and Valley Forge stakes, and earned $1.1 million. She also is driven by Tetrick.
Also entered was Anndrovette, who won the $326,680 Lady Maud on November 6 at Yonkers Raceway.
This story courtesy of Harness Racing Communications, a division of the U.S. Trotting Association. For more information, visit www.ustrotting.com.