The first full day of two-year-old races at Harrah's Philadelphia in 2025 was held on Tuesday morning, June 10, with three cuts for each sex/gait combination except for only two races for trotting colts.
The first pacing male race came before precipitation caused the track to be downgraded from “fast +0” to “sloppy +1” for the remainder of the two-year-olds’ competition, the debut race of all the babies.
The fastest performer of the day by far was the winner of the last of the baby races, the Stay Hungry-Zellweger Blue Chip pacing filly Lyons I Wanna Chip. The precocious frosh sat in the pocket then came her own back fractions in :56.4 and :27.2 to make her bow in 1:57.3 for owner Threelyonsracing. Her braintrust is two individuals who have had much success with females, especially on the local scene – driver Tim Tetrick and trainer Jim King Jr.
Another magic miler in her bow was the American Ideal-Fly In Style miss Liberty Style (the dam’s half brother Tattoo Artist was a $3.2 million winner). Liberty Style came from far out of it to post a 1:59.2 clocking, flashing late numbers of :55.2 and :26.4 for driver/trainer Andrew Stafford.
Among the pacing males, the Tall Dark Stranger-Time On My Hands colt Always Has Been went the fastest, setting the pace then holding off Heartfelt Hanover by a nose in 1:59 with a :28.3 last quarter. Trainer Kevin Lare was behind the winner for owner Frank Chick.
The other two sections of this group were won by pupils of Polie Mallar, who is riding high with the recent success of Ken Hanover and who co-owns both babies. Mallar drove the Stay Hungry-Rockingcam Park colt Rasaji Hanover to victory in 2:00.1, coming home in :27.3, while Andrew McCarthy was behind the Captaintreacherous-American Sara colt American Road Trip, who wired his field in 2:01.3 with a :29 final frame.
On the trotting side, the Greenshoe-Princess Lilly filly Aspire recorded the quickest mile, throwing in identical back splits of :29.3 to win in 2:02.2 for driver Tim Tetrick, trainer Jim Campbell (that pair also won a race with the Father Patrick-Cruella De Ville colt Spicoli), and owners Coyote Wynd Farms.
The fastest of the male trotting action was the royally-bred Joe Bo (by Walner out of Solveig, dam of $2.86 million winner Shake It Cerry) successfully debuting in 2:03, going wire-to-wire with a :29.4 last quarter to hold off Repete Titan by the smallest margin for driver Josert Fonseca, trainer Nancy Takter and owners Christina Takter and Solveig’s Breeders.
Trainers Mallar and Campbell, as noted, trained two winning two-year-olds; Stay Hungry had the only siring double. Andrew McCarthy drove two successful freshmen; Tim Tetrick guided three, and he had five winners in all during the morning counting the qualifiers for older horses behind the baby races. With the surface upgraded to “good” for these events, Tetrick won with the Sweet Lou sophomore filly Faze in 1:53.2 and the Bettors Delight gelding Typhoon Banner N, a Borgata Series participant, in 1:52.1.
(With files from PHHA/Harrah's Philadelphia)