After a 25-length romp in first-round action, She Is Strong made easy work of her competition once again in the second leg of the Delaware Standardbred Breeders’ Fund (DSBF) series for three-year-old trotting fillies at Bally’s Dover, coasting to an easy 1:58 win in her $20,000 preliminary event on Monday (Dec. 4).
Trainer-driver Art Stafford Jr. put She Is Strong on an uncontested lead through a :29.4 first quarter, and the daughter of Anders Bluestone-Nidaros led pocket rival Starlight Lounge (driven by Cody Poliseno) through middle splits of :59.1 and 1:28.4 before drawing clear to win by 5-3/4 lengths. Royal Flirt (Justin Vincent) finished third, another 4-3/4 lengths in arrears.
Jeffery Clark owns She Is Strong, a 14-time winner with $231,625 in career earnings.
The second division saw Lady Brass ($4.80) and driver Russell Foster capitalize on an early break in stride by 2-5 favourite and first-round winner Last Nights Hit (Stafford) en route to a 2:00.3 score. The CR Commando-Savannah Montana filly trotted unopposed through fractions of :29.2, :59.3 and 1:30 before edging away from the pocket-sitting Tymal Jacquelyn (Poliseno) to win by 3-1/2 lengths. Last Nights Hit failed to catch the top pair after her miscue but saved third.
Clifton Green trains Lady Brass, a two-time winner with $90,570 in the bank, for LCT Stable.
All eight fillies who started in the first two preliminary rounds qualify for the $110,000 DSBF series final, scheduled for next Monday (Dec. 11). Second-round preliminary DSBF action at Bally’s Dover continues Tuesday (Dec. 5) with a pair of $20,000 divisions for three-year-old male trotters; the first is scheduled as a non-wagering event at 4:10 p.m. (EST) and the second kicks off a 15-race pari-mutuel card at 4:30 p.m.
(Delaware Standardbred Breeders' Fund)