Anderlecht and Jazzmanian Devil, one-two in a solid mile last week, will get another chance to settle the score in this Saturday night’s featured pace at Cal Expo. A field of eight will face starter Ken Fowler.
A 12-race program will be on tap under the banner of Watch and Wager LLC and things will get underway at 6:15 p.m. The headliner has been set as Race 9 and there will also be a California Sire Stakes race for three-year-old trotters that will be decided as a non-betting race prior to the regular card.
Anderlecht is a 12-year-old son of Cams Card Shark who is owned by William Neumeister, hails from the Sparky Clarke barn, and will once again have Luke Plano giving directions.
In last week’s Open II Pace, he was up close and personal from the outset and dug in gamely to hold safe in the stretch over Jazzmanian Devil, the slight 2-1 favourite in that affair and shuffled past the half. The latter pacer races for William Condon with Kathleen Plested training and Mooney Svendsen guiding.
Rounding out the cast are Fly Away, who gives the Plested barn two looks at the outcome; the Gene Vallandingham-trained Mr Pearl; the Lino Pacheco-conditioned duo of Bettermeboy and One And Only; V Mack from the George Reider shedrow, and the Bob Johnson-trained Paydaze A Rockin.
Looking at the sire stakes, Lodi Puppycat will look to complete his dominance of the division for owner/breeders Mary Harris and Pierre Girard with Girard the conditioner and Luke Plano once again doing the honours.
The son of Eager Seelster has captured all four of the big-money events for the sophomore trotters, proving in his most recent stakes score that a ‘sloppy’ track is also in his wheelhouse. He will be challenged by Lodi Jazz Player, Never Onebadchange and Indio Azteca.
(Cal Expo)