Driver Todd McCarthy and trainer Andrew Harris combined to win two of three Matron Stakes divisions for two-year-olds at Dover Downs on Thursday, Nov. 6.
Naughty Beauty out-kicked favourite Im A Lou Lou to capture the Grade 2 $147,747 Matron for two-year-old pacing fillies in a 10-1 upset. Naughty Beauty dropped back to seventh in a :27 first quarter but moved out second-over behind Im A Lou Lou (Tim Tetrick) and followed her through :56.2 and 1:23.4 middle fractions. Im A Lou Lou held off three attackers into deep-stretch, but Naughty Beauty ignited late and got up by a head in 1:53.4. Tall Dark Tequila (Jason Bartlett) was third by a neck.
Naughty Beauty, a daughter of Bettors Delight-Beautyonthebeach, tallied her second win in six starts and upped her earnings to $108,506. Harris co-owns her with William Pollock and Bruce Areman. She paid $22.80 to win.
Heart For Two sprung a bigger upset in the Grade 2 $155,352 Matron for freshman filly trotters at 23-1. She took the pocket behind favoured Atlantic Summer (Ronnie Wrenn Jr.), where she sat through :28.2, :58.3, and 1:27.4 fractions before tipping out and collaring that rival in the stretch to win by a half-length in 1:57.3. R Ro (Tetrick) completed the top three.
Heart For Two is now two-for-10 for Harris, Pollock, and Areman. The daughter of Gimpanzee-House Music Fr has earned $148,508. She returned $49.80.
New York champion Fragment shot up the inside to take the Grade 3 $172,676 Matron for rookie pacing males. After taking early command, he ceded the front to Melillo (Wrenn) and travelled in the two-hole through :26.3, :56.1, and 1:23.2 splits. He shook loose at the cones for Bartlett in the stretch and exploded to a 3-3/4-length victory in 1:52.3. Apocalypsebluechip (Todd McCarthy) closed for second over Thai Hanover (Jeremy Indof).
Fragment won for the ninth time in 15 attempts for trainer Per Engblom. The Huntsville-The Show Returns colt, who last started in the Breeders Crown, has now earned $808,794. He is owned by Engblom Stable LLC, Douglas Sipple, and Peaceful Acre Farm. The win payout was $3.40.
There were also three $28,169 first-round divisions of the Delaware Standardbred Breeders Fund (DSBF) Stakes for two-year-old pacing males on the card.
Jo Ann Looney-King's homebred Slugger On Deck parlayed a pocket trip into a 1:53.1 win in the third and fastest split.
Slugger On Deck and driver Allan Davis left for a pocket ride behind Harrington series champion and 1-9 favourite C Millertimeagain (Corey Callahan). After drafting behind splits of :28.2, :56.2, and 1:25.1, Davis angled Slugger On Deck off the pegs just above the eighth pole, and the Hes Watching-End To End Hanover colt vaulted clear to win by three lengths and knock two seconds off his previous lifetime mark. South Of The Hood (Montrell Teague) rallied up the open stretch to collar C Millertimeagain for second. Jim King Jr. trains five-time winner Slugger On Deck, who paid $8.80 to win in his eighth start.
In the first section, 1-9 favourite Watch Em Win and driver Tim Tetrick brushed from third to clear early leader Stained Glass (Ross Wolfenden) with a lap to go before drawing 5-1/2 lengths clear of that rival to win in 1:53.2. Iheartmum (Art Stafford Jr.) finished third. Ron Burke trains Watch Em Win ($2.10), a Hes Watching-Winners Over colt with six career wins in 10 tries, for Burke Racing Stable LLC, Knox Services Inc., Phil Collura, and Weaver Bruscemi.
Roman Raider and Barton Dalious rounded out the trio of winners with a three-quarter-length, maiden-breaking 1:58.1 score from the pocket over pacesetter Hes Peeping (Jason Thompson) in the second division. Tug River Sas (Wolfenden) finished third. Wayne Givens trains Roman Raider ($3.80), a son of Sports Column-Pillage, for Legacy Racing of Delaware Inc. and Hazzard Racing Stables. The gelding is now two-for-eight.
Rookie male pacers will reconvene for the second round of the Dover DSBF series on Nov. 13 before the top eight point-earners from preliminary competition will meet in a $110,000 USD final on Nov. 20.
In the overnight feature, Itsrockandroll A benefitted from a perfect trip and won the $40,141 Blue Hen Open Pace, ending a four-race streak of place finishes.
Muskateer Hanover (Davis), the 1-5 favourite, left the quickest off the wings while Itsrockandroll A (Tetrick) utilized his post-two start to grab a pocket trip. Muskateer Hanover, who shipped in from Cumberland Run, set the fractions of :27, :55.1, and 1:23.1. Stevens Saloon (Thompson) moved first-over from seventh but was unable to impact the leader. Itsrockandroll A swung out coming off the final turn, drew alongside Muskateer Hanover, and eclipsed him late to win in 1:51.1 by a nose. Hundred Dollar Man (Teague) was third.
The win was a family affair for the Brittinghams; Itsrockandroll A is trained by Don Brittingham and owned by his wife Elizabeth and son Bret. The 10-year-old son of A Rockandroll Dance-Miss Worthy Whitby is now 42-for-150 lifetime with $846,502 in earnings. He paid $12.80 for the minor upset victory.
“He got the perfect trip and that was the difference,” Don Brittingham said after the race.
Racing resumes at Bally's Dover on Monday, Nov. 10 with two $20,000 USD first-round DSBF divisions for two-year-old trotting fillies. There will be a superfecta carryover worth $843.
(Standardbred Canada & Bally's Dover & DSBF; photo of Heart For Two winning on Nov. 6)