The Liberty Bell Stakes series continued on Thursday, Nov. 6 at Harrah’s Philadelphia with two-year-old fillies — two divisions on the trot and one on the pace — having to work in cool temperatures and battling both each other and a strong stretch headwind for $169,014 in combined purses.
Yannick Gingras once again exemplified his Hall-of-Fame talent with a nerveless steer behind Sandyboots Yankee in winning the $46,761 first Liberty Bell pacing division. Jk Sassy Lady (Andrew McCarthy) crossed over to the top in the field of five past the quarter while Sandyboots Yankee was forced to take back to last. The four in front of her paired up two and two down the back and through the final turn. Gingras chose to put the daughter of Always B Miki-A Beach Cowgirl in a blind switch when the second-over horse tipped wide, which left Sandyboots Yankee last at the stretch call.
Gingras then shot the Ron Burke trainee into open racetrack, and the filly came along well to win in 1:53.4 by three-quarters of a length over Jk Sassy Lady. Eternal Dream (Tim Tetrick) finished third. Sandyboots Yankee, who won a John Simpson Sr. Memorial division last out, scored for Burke Racing Stable LLC, Weaver Bruscemi LLC, Larry Karr, and Phil Collura. She paid $2.80 in her third win from nine starts.
Gingras and Burke came right back in the $47,324 second Liberty Bell pace, this time with the Tall Dark Stranger-Apple Bottom Jeans miss With The Fur ($18.40), who broke her maiden in 1:54.3. With The Fur, an 8-1 shot, had a cushy ride in the three-hole, moved out on the turn, and left the field well behind her as she made her first win in nine tries a three-length stakes success for owner Howard Taylor. Kilauea Hanover (Braxten Boyd) was second-best, followed by Carolina (Andrew McCarthy).
In the $75,493 Liberty Bell event for trotters, Berry Good News ($4.80), who in her last start had made an early break but still came back to miss narrowly to Sister Wine, reversed that decision today in 1:56.4. The victorious daughter of Greenshoe-Poof Shes Gone barrelled away strongly and put Sister Wine in behind her, set the pace, then had enough left to hold off that game rival by a head. There was a Tyler exactor in this race, as driver Buter beat driver Miller. Glory And Gold (Ake Svanstedt) completed the ticket. The winner is now three-for-12 for trainer Nifty Norman and owners Melvin Hartman and David McDuffee.
There were two conditioned trotting overnight features, and both were won by driver Johnathan Ahle. A $19,014 contest for up-and-coming horses went to the International Moni-Take It Off Girl sophomore miss Moni Buys Happynes ($6.40), who had a rough trip including a long first-over battle, yet despite 47 days off, dug in to beat out the favoured second-over Manoah (Niko Karna) by a neck in 1:55.2. Flight Of Fritz (Allard) finished third. Richard Hans is the trainer and owner of the winner of four out of seven starts, who did not race at two.
The International Moni-Jewels In The Sand gelding Khaosan Road proved a half-length better than pacesetting millionaire favourite Chapercraz in a classic stretch duel to take the $18,310 fast-class feature in 1:53.3. Ahle sent Khaosan Road frontward early then yielded to sit on the back of the chalk, vacated the golden chair on the last turn, and the five-year-old had to produce all he could to defeat the stubborn leader while taking his 15th lifetime win in 43 starts for trainer Svanstedt and the partnership of Knutsson Trotting Inc. and Little E LLC. Get A Wish Dk (Svanstedt) was third.
Driver Simon Allard had a triple, two of them for trainer Per Engblom. Driving doubles were recorded by Ahle, Gingras, Tyler Miller, and Jack Pelling. Burke and Engblom (one-two in North America in wins) trained two winners each on the 14-race card.
The Friday 12:25 p.m. program marks the end of the 2025 run of the Liberty Bell Stakes series at the southeast Pennsylvania oval, with the “glamour boys,” the three-year-old males, in action. There will be three divisions for pacers, featuring such nationally known names as Prince Hal Hanover and Twisted Destiny, and two sections for trotters. Friday also marks the start of a claiming series for horse valued at $10,000 USD, with five divisions in the first leg. The best from three preliminary legs will come back to contest a $12,500 USD championship on Nov. 30.
(With files from PHHA/Harrah's Philadelphia)