Two of the three $20,000 divisions of the second prelim of the Bobby Weiss Series for sophomore trotting fillies saw repeat winners in Tuesday’s (April 18) action at Pocono Downs at Mohegan Pennsylvania, but the other success story, the debutante Kaddari, who like the other Weiss winners is a daughter of Walner, posted the fastest time of 1:55.1 on a cold day.
Unraced at two, Kaddari, a $375,000 yearling, began paying back that sizable investment for Courant Inc. Mattias Melander quickly made the top with the filly, trained by his brother Marcus, and kept the lead the rest of the way, with Baby Oil three-quarters of a length back.
The aptly-named Quite Fast remained unbeaten for the year as she lowered her mark to 1:56.1, edging favoured Over Board (also a first week winner) by a nose for driver George Napolitano Jr., trainer Pete Kaiser and the ownership of Bax Stable, Glengate Fams and Brilo Farms. A Good Chardonnay is also unbeaten in a pair of 2023 starts after a 1:58 victory for Team Orange Crush, driver Andy and trainer Julie Miller, and the ownership of Andy Miller Stable Inc., Michael Anderson and Jean Goehlen.
The Tuesday card also hosted five $20,000 final preliminary round divisions of the Game Of Claims Trotting Series for horses with a base tag of $30,000. No one effected a sweep of the three rounds, but two horses recorded their second series victory: Cant Say No (1:54.4, driver George Napolitano Jr., undefeated in the only two prelims he contested) and the French-bred Elegant Dulupin FR (equalling her mark of 1:55.1 for Mark MacDonald).
George Napolitano Jr. took a second Game Of Claims win, complementing his Weiss victory, with Warrior Way in 1:55; Braxten Boyd also won two races in the claiming series, with Ladys Image (1:56.3) and Crazycat (1:56.4). None of the winners were claimed on Tuesday, with the group’s $40,000 championship looming just a week away.
The Bobby Weiss Series will begin to conduct its third and final preliminaries on the next card at Pocono, Saturday, April 22 at 1 p.m., with the three-year-old pacing males, the Weiss horses all trying for spots in their $50,000 championships the following week.
(PHHA / Pocono)