The third week of Breakfast With The Babies at Meadowlands Racetrack is in the books, with William Pollock, Bruce Areman and trainer Andrew Harris showing up and showing off on Friday, June 19 with some of harness racing's highest-priced 2025 yearlings.
Breakfast With The Babies is sponsored by the Tactical Landing Syndicate, Ecurie D Syndicate and Karl Syndicate. The third week featured temperatures in the mid-70's and a fast track.
Wishawave kicked things off with a win in the first qualifier, tripping the timer faster than any of those to follow during the 16 baby races.
Scott Zeron guided the son of Bettors Wish-Making Waves to his second qualifying score of the season, a 1:54.1 tally after debuting on June 10 at Gaitway Farms with a 1:56 victory. The Linda Toscano trainee was on top at every call, pacing through fractions of :30.2, :58.4 and 1:27.3 before sprinting home in :26.3 to best Aintmyfirstro Deo (driven by Dexter Dunn) by more than three lengths. A Bettor Dream (Andy McCarthy) finished third.
A $69,444 Lexington Selected Yearling Sale purchase, Wishawave was bred by Brittany Farms LLC of Versailles, Ky. and they retained part ownership of the colt with The Bay's Stable LLC of Englewood, Colorado.
Captain Kangaroo pounced late in the second baby race of the morning to win on debut for his connections. Sitting second for driver Andy McCarthy behind one of last week's winners, Lone Cypress and brother Todd, Captain Kangaroo sprung the pocket after panels of :31.1, :59.4 and 1:28.3 to get up by a neck over Lone Cypress in 1:55.4. Dog Dare You (Dunn) was next across the wire.
Noel Daley trains Captain Kangaroo (Captaintreacherous-Mattie Terror Girl), a $131,944 Lexington purchase bred by Big Als Stables of Woodbridge, Ont. and owned by Sjoeblom Racing Inc. of Delray Beach, Fl., Joseph Di Scala Jr. of Somers, N.Y., FAC Racing LLC of Scarsdale, N.Y. and Michael Dolan of Sarasota, Fl.
The first foal from millionaire pacing mare Sea Silk, Sweet As Silk scored smoothly in the session's third two-year-old qualifier, Sitting second for Todd McCarthy after a :30.4 opening quarter from Amber Waves (Jason Bartlett), Sweet As Silk slid to the top through a 1:00.2 half and stayed on top through the back half of the mile. After reaching three-quarters in 1:30, Sweet As Silk sashayed home in :28 for the 1:58 score.
Purchased in Lexington for $277,778, Sweet As Silk is a daughter of Sweet Lou owned by New Jersey-based William Pollock and Bruce Areman of Freehold and trainer Andrew Harris of Allentown, N.J. The filly was bred by Diamond Creek Farm LLC of Lexington, Ky., Burke Racing Stable LLC of Fredericktown, Pa., Knox Services Inc. of Mt. Vernon, Oh. and Hatfield Stables of Columbus, Oh.
Stablemate Seaside Ubeaut is no slouch in the pedigree department, either. And the daughter of Downbytheseaside-Warrawee Ubeaut showed why those same owners ponied up $694,444 for the bay filly at Lexington last year with her second winning effort in as many outings.
Sitting third in the morning's fourth qualifying dash behind pacesetter Ranch Water (Bartlett) and Glittering (Pat Ryder), Seaside Ubeaut patiently paced through Ranch Water's tempo of :31, :59.3 and 1:28.2 until driver Dunn angled the rookie from the three hole turning for home. Glittering also showed late speed to create a three-across finish at the wire, where Seaside Ubeaut bested second-place Glittering and third-place Ranch Water by a neck in 1:56.4.
Seaside Ubeaut was bred by Burke Racing Stable LLC, Crawford Farms Racing of Syracuse, N.Y., J And T Silva Purnel And Libby of Ocean Ridge, Fl. and Phil Collura of Mountain Top, Pa.
Atomix Hanover missed by head in his first appearance, but made every call a winning one in the fifth qualifier of the session. Driver Anthony MacDonald asked the son of Stay Hungry-Ameraway to step forward fastest from the pylons, and the colt responded by cutting all the fractions in a 1:56 mile. After a :31 opening quarter and 1:01 half, Atomix Hanover answered the call with a :55 back half, pacing his final quarters in :27.2 and :27.3 to best Bulldog Spirit (Andy McCarthy) by four lengths at the finish. Tonite Show (Zeron) completed the top trio.
Bred by Hanover Shoe Farms, Atomix Hanover was a $91,549 yearling sale purchase from Harrisburg. A brother to Open class pacer Remember The Alamo from the family of the accomplished speedsters Sylvia Hanover and Western Fame, Atomix Hanover is trained by Jason McGinnis and owned by Thestable Atomix Hanover of Brunswick, Oh. and Hutchison Harness LLC of North Ridgeville, Oh.
In the sixth dash, trotters took center stage during the Breakfast With The Babies session, comprising the next 11 qualifiers. Eternal Thunder J fronted a Walner-sired sweep of the top three spots in that sixth baby race.
Abelar (Mattias Melander) made the first call in :31.4, with Eternal Thunder J second for driver Niko Karna. With the tempo accelerating, Eternal Thunder J looped to the lead through a 1:01.3 half and the son of Walner-Sarcy stretched out his lead from there. After a 1:30.1 third station, Eternal Thunder J stormed home strongly in :29.1 for the 1:59.2 score up by more than four lengths over Headline (Zeron) and Ice Wall (Todd McCarthy).
Daley trains Eternal Thunder J, a $208,333 Lexington yearling, owned by Kenneth Jacobs of Baldwinsville, N,Y. Steve Stewart of Paris, Ky. and Oakwood Farms of Montgomery, Ind. are the breeders of record.
Fleur Delacoeur delivered a rare driving win for trainer Marcus Melander in the seventh dash of the session. Tripping out in the pocket behind stablemate Agano (Mattias Melander) through fractions of :29.3, :58.4 and 1:28.1, Fleur Delacoeur received her cue in the stretch and flawlessly trotted past the pacesetter to win in 1:57. Orinoco (Ake Svanstedt) closed well to finish second, 1-3/4 lengths back, with Agano in for third.
Melander's Holly Lane Stud East Ltd. of Vero Beach, Fl. owns Fleur Delacoeur, a $62,500 Lexington purchase. The daughter of Gimpanzee-Insta Glam was bred by Christina Takter of East Windsor, N.J., Michael Falk of Malmo, Sweden and Suleyman Yuksel Stables Inc. of Delray Beach, Fl.
The eighth baby race of the morning went to Morethanenough, who lived up that name with a 1:57.1 tally for driver Zeron and trainer Tony Alagna. Zeron positioned Morethanenough in third while Hypersonic (Svanstedt) doled out fractions of :30.3, 1:00 and 1:28.2. In the stretch, Zeron asked his charge for more step and the trotting colt delivered more than enough speed to collar his rivals and win by 1-1/2 lengths. Wrong Sounds Right (Todd McCarthy) also closed strongly to best Hypersonic for second.
Bred by Brittany Farms LLC and Riverview Breeding LLC of Boynton Beach, Fl., More Than Enough (Walner-More Than Ever) was collared for $48,611 at Lexington by owners Joseph Giaramita of Brooklyn, N.Y. and Alagna Racing LLC of Howell, N.J. with Brittany Farms LLC retaining a percentage.
A 1:59.3 winner in the first BWTB session of the year, Mats scored again in week three for trainer-driver Svanstedt and bested his previous mark by two full seconds.
As Southern Hanover (Tim Tetrick) fronted the ninth race participants through fractions of :31.2, 1:01 and 1:30.1, Mats trotted in third until the third station where Svanstedt gave the son of Walner-Beautiful Sin his cue to go forward. The colt responded with a :27 final quarter to trip the timer in 1:57.3, more than two lengths better than Dream Shaq (Dunn) with Southern Hanover in for third.
Bred by Ab Svensk Reklamfinans of Del Ray Beach, Mats is owned by S R F Stable of Del Ray Beach.
Extremely Tactical comes from a strong family of female trotting talent and the daughter of Tactical Landing-D One appears to be continuing that tradition after a $232,394 Harrisburg transaction last fall and a winning effort on Friday.
As Sabia (Marcus Melander) cleared Jot It Down (Dunn) through a :30.2 opening quarter in the 10th baby race, Todd McCarthy sat third with Extremely Tactical but decided on a front-end mission down the backside. Clearing to the top before a 1:00.4 half, Extremely Tactical maintained a 1-1/4 length advantage over Sabia through a 1:30.1 third station and under the wire in 1:59. Caught Speeding (Zeron) closed swiftly — but under the local limit — to complete the top trio.
William Pollock, Bruce Areman and trainer Andrew Harris hold the papers on Extremely Tactical, bred by Steve Stewart, John Bootsman of Ekero, Sweden, Black Creek Farm and Martin Schmucker of Grabill, Ind.
Only three of the baby race qualifiers featured wire-to-wire winners, with the third being Svanstedt pupil Laurensstrongluck. Yannick Gingras guided the daughter of Muscle Hill-Lucky Ava in the 11th, and the $125,000 Lexington yearling muscled her way through fractions of :30.3, 1:00.1 and 1:29.4 before tripping the timer in 1:58.3. Creamy Armitage (Tetrick) finished two lengths back in second with Special Orchid (Zeron) next across the wire.
Bred by Ake Svanstedt Inc. of Wrightstown, N.J. and Little E LLC of New York, N.Y., Laurensstrongluck is owned by Little E LLC and Ake Svanstedt Inc.
Seven Pledges prevailed by a head in 1:57 one week ago, and the $985,915 Harrisburg yearling returned this week to improve on his previous speed badge. Gustav Vasa (Mattias Melander) set solid fractions of :29.3, :59 and 1:28 in an attempt to see his mile through in the 12th but was picked off by Seven Pledges and driver Bartlett in a 1:56.3 effort. Bartlett started first up from third before the third quarter, and trotted home in :28 to best the tempo-setter by 1-1/4 lengths. Bigtime Chapter (Dunn) rounded out the top three.
Pollock, Areman and trainer Harris own Seven Pledges, a son of Chapter Seven-Clockwork Orange bred by Jonas Schlabach of Apple Creek, Oh.
Highest Mountain reached the summit on debut in the 13th baby race, as the son of Walner-Monimovesmountains and driver Dunn converted off a pocket trip. Mackinac Isle (Anibal Borjas) dished out fractions of :30.3, 1:00.4 and 1:30.1 but couldn't hold off the challenge of Highest Mountain, who trotted home in :28.4 for the 1:59.1 tally. Mackinac Isle was a length back in second with Knotts (Tyler Buter) in for third.
Seemingly sold at Lexington for $97,222 last fall, Highest Mountain is listed as owned by breeders Moni Maker Stable of Enfield, Conn.
If there's a story behind the name of Two Day Hangover, inquiring minds want to know. The winner of the 14th two-year-old qualifier, Two Day Hangover showed no signs of sluggishness in a 1:57 effort three lengths the best. Driver Dunn dropped the daughter of Captain Corey-Sherry Lyns Lady in fourth as Im A Hugger (Zeron) sailed through splits of :29, :58 and 1:27.3. Dunn followed the cover of Exquis (MacDonald) around the far turn and then tipped off that one's back in the stretch. Trotting home in :28.2, Two Day Hangover collared Im A Hugger for the victory with Exquis in for third.
A $183,099 Harrisburg yearling, Two Day Hangover is owned by Brittany Farms LLC and Marvin Katz LLC of Versailles, Ky. She was bred by Coyote Wynd Farms of Oakville, Ont.
Super Way has prevailed in both of his Big M appearances thus far, and strangely, both miles have featured horses making breaks on the front end.
In this week's 15th dash, Anthony MacDonald positioned Super Way in third behind Big Time Trot S (Svanstedt) and Emulous Hanover (Veli Pekka Toivanen). After fronting the field through a :30.4 first quarter, Big Time Trot blew up at the 1:00.4 half and dropped back out of contention. Here, Emulous Hanover inherited the lead and Super Way inherited a two-hole trip to the 1:31.3 third station. MacDonald angled out of the pocket after that third station and Super Way made his way to the top by the head of the lane. With a :27.4 kicker to close out his mile, Super Way was more than two lengths the best in a 1:59.3 performance. Emulous Hanover and Offenbach (Zeron) finished in a dead-heat for second.
Purchased at Lexington for $66,667, Super Way is a son of Walner from the accomplished megastar Ariana G. Bred by Marvin Katz of Toronto and Al Libfeld of Pickering, Ont., Super Way is owned by Thestable Super Way Group of Brunswick, Oh.
Closing out the Friday session of baby races was Fascination, providing the team of Pollock, Areman and Harris with their fifth winner of the morning.
A filly by Tactical Landing-Pin Kronos It, Fascination debuted impressively for driver Bartlett and trainer Harris. Sitting in the pocket behind Only By Request (Mattias Melander) through fractions of :30.2, 1:00 and 1:29.1, Fascination vacated the pocket in the stretch and powered past the tempo-setter with a :28.1 final quarter for the 1:57.3 speed badge. Only By Request finished a stout second with Seven Thirds (Zeron) another full length back in third.
Bred by Steve Stewart and Glencairn Racing Stb Inc. of Toronto, Ont., Fascination was a $263,889 Lexington yearling now owned by Pollock, Areman and Harris.
The final Breakfast With The Babies session of the season comes one week from today, Friday, June 26, with a first post time of 9 a.m.
(Meadowlands)