After mammoth sessions of two-year-old qualifiers on Friday, both Mohawk Racetrack and The Meadowlands were back at it with more of the same on Saturday morning.
While a number of winners paced sub-1:57 on Saturday morning at Mohawk, Southwind Indy was the fastest of that group. The Sportswriter-Its Only Rocknroll colt sat patiently in the pocket for trainer-driver Casie Coleman before springing loose in the stretch and scoring a two-lengths-the-best 1:56.3 debut victory.
Coleman plucked Southwind Indy from the Lexington Selected Yearling Sale for $45,000 and co-owns the colt under her West Wins Stable along with Steve Calhoun of Chatham, Ont. and the colt's breeder, Southwind Farms LLC of Pennington, N.J.
Sons and daughters of Sportswriter captured half of the 14 qualifiers at Mohawk on Saturday. To view the full charted results, click the following link: Saturday Qualifiers - Mohawk Racetrack.
Saturday morning’s Breakfast with the Babies at The Meadowlands was offered up on a perfect morning with mild temperatures and little wind.
Quick impressions were that Jimmy Takter has another powerful group of freshman trotters, his fellow Swede Ake Svanstedt is a quick study with pacers and Tony Alagna chose well last fall.
Jimmy opened with a trotting filly triple, winning the first with Tangerine Bi in 2:01.3. She is a Yankee Glide from Muscovite that he drove for the partnership of Christina Takter, Marvin Katz and John & Jim Fielding who gave $70,000 for her at Lexington. Takter Stable then took the second with Wild Honey in 2:00.1 leading all the way with Yannick Gingras driving for Christina, John & Jim Fielding and Herb Liverman over Sales Office Lillie and Shes On Fire. She is also a Lexington Select graduate at $35,000.
Third race, same story with the sharp looking Donato Hanover x Southwind Allaire filly Sarcy exploding from the pocket for an effortless 1:58.4 win with Gingras driving for Takter over Rules Of The Road and Wordie Hanover. It was the second impressive morning appearance for the $37,000 Lexington buy, owned again by Christina Takter and the Fielding brothers. After his entry was scratched in the fourth race, Takter resumed winning in the fifth with the $80,000 Harrisburg buy Speak To Me impressing with a closing move into a 28.3 final quarter for the 2:00.3 win. Brittany Farms paid $80,000 for the first crop Muscle Massive filly out of Ms Naughty at Harrisburg. Encora and Iluvmyjimmychoos followed the winner under the wire.
Takter later sent out the Bettors Delight x Armbro Amoretto pacing colt Bet You to win the morning’s fastest race as he closed to a 1:55.3 win with Yannick driving. In a race with plenty of pace and action, Bet You sprinted home in 27.1 for a clear win over pacesetter Elwell. He cost Christina Takter, John & Jim Fielding and J McClelland $75,000 at Lexington last fall.
Ake Svanstedt unveiled a sample of his first crop of yearlings trained in the US with a good showing. He won the sixth with Blue Muse, a Muscles Yankee filly from Upside Blue Chip he owns in partnership with her breeder, Jeff Gural’s Little E LLC. She sat just behind the lead and trotted by in the stretch in 2:01.3 with a 29.2 final quarter. Svanstedt then unveiled a really talented SJs Caviar x ENS Tag Session colt named Centurion ATM in race eight coming first over into a 1:33 three panels then drawing off to win in 2:00.3 under his own power. He cost Courant AB and Knutsson Trotting Inc. (the Sebastian K owners) $100,000 at Harrisburg and he looks like the goods. Elusive Action and Mercury Fashion followed the winner in.
Ake came back to win a pacing race with the Western Ideal x Bold Pink colt Badix Hanover in 1:57.1. He was a $30,000 Harrisburg yearling and is owned by Svanstedt.
Trotting colt Gifted Way closed up considerable ground willingly into a 28.3 final quarter to nip Amicus in 1:58.3 for Scott Zeron and Tony Alagna. This sharp looking Cantab Hall colt from Rare Gift brought $170,000 at Lexington and is owned by Brittany Farms, Little E LLC, Joe Sbrocco and Deo Volente Farms in a Myron Bell partnership. Longcat Hanover looked good too. He won from behind for Nifty Norman and Dave Miller in 2:00.3 with a good last quarter. Pinske Stables and Enzed Racing gave $40,000 for this Muscle Massive colt from Likeavirgin Lindy.
The pacers started with a pair of nice Rocknroll Hanover fillies battling through a 26.3 final quarter with Smart Zone (Open Book Test) prevailing narrowly for Marcus and Erv Miller over Wicked Little Minx from the Svanstedt barn, the mile in 1:57.1. Paymaq Racing and D&M Trading gave $48,000 for her at Harrisburg.
Shes Some Treasure is the full sister to Captaintreacherous and she flashed speed and grit in her 1:57.1 trial this morning. She was out past the quarter then cut the mile, sprinting home in 27.4 for Tetrick. She is trained in the Tony Alagna barn for breeder & owner White Birch Farms. Tony had a nice pair in the last race with Trading Up winning on the lead despite going greenly for Scott Zeron, holding off stable mate Robert Hill in 1:56.1 with 26.4 on the end. He’s a Somebeachsomewhere from Rita J owned by Alagna, Alber and Waxman, an $80,000 but at Harrisburg.
To view the full charted results, click the following link: Saturday Qualifiers - Meadowlands Racetrack.
To read the recap of the Friday qualifying sessions from Mohawk Racetrack and the Meadowlands Racetrack, click here.
(with files from The Meadowlands)