Coming to North America has worked out in spectacular fashion for Oakwood Ardan IR. Winning the $37,671 featured Winners Over Pace at The Meadowlands on Saturday night (June 1) gave the five-year-old gelding nine wins in 10 starts on American soil since arriving from Great Britain.
The Robert Cleary trainee displayed an explosive burst of speed through the stretch to burst past Allywag Hanover and Primary Colors nearing the wire in a sparkling 1:48.3.
Patience paid off for Oakwood Ardan and driver Andy McCarthy in the latest win by the son of Sweet Lou-Trend Setter. The gelding sat sixth on the rail at the half mile while watching Allywag Hanover and Primary Colors battling for the lead, turning fractions of :27 and :54.3.
Heading for three-quarters, Oakwood Ardan got some help in the way of cover from the first-over American Dealer N, as Allywag Hanover, the lifetime earner of nearly $2.4 million, led at that station in 1:21.3.
Once they straightened away for the drive to the finish, McCarthy tipped Oakwood Ardan off his now-not-so-live tow, and exploded past the field during a final quarter of :26.1 on the way to a safe half-length win over Primary Colors, who nudged past Allywag Hanover nearing the wire in the race for place.
“I had a long way to come tonight,” said McCarthy. “But I had a cover trip. He’s just amazing, really. As far back as he was, I was comfortable, and that’s hard to come by. He did a great job in Great Britain and to come here and go the times he’s gone. I just hope he keeps improving like he’s doing.”
Oakwood Ardan returned $3.20 to his backers as the 3-5 public choice. Overall, he has 18 wins from 38 lifetime outings, good for earnings of $148,130. He is owned by Royal Wire Products Inc.
Both McCarthy and Jason Bartlett finished the night with four winners apiece. Cleary and Jenn Bongiorno led the trainers with two victories each.
There were no winning tickets sold on the 20-cent Pick-6. Friday’s pool will start with a carryover of $6,309.
All-source wagering totalled $3,178,258 USD on the 14-race program, making it 36 times from 43 race cards that wagering has gone past the $3-million USD mark during 2024 at The Big M.
Racing resumes on Friday, June 7 at The Meadowlands with a 6:20 p.m. post time.
(With files from The Meadowlands)