Stars, 2YOs In Friday Qualifiers

The Meadowlands Racetrack and Mohawk Racetrack each held massive qualifying sessions on Friday, June 27, meaning that returning starts and budding prospects were in abundance under perfect racing conditions.

Stars were aplenty during the Meadowlands’ session, which kicked off with races for two-year-old trotters. Trainer Jimmy Takter won the first two races.

Race 1 at the Meadowlands saw the two-year-old Muscle Hill-Unbelievable colt Falk On Hill S win for Takter in 2:01 off a :28.3 final quarter. The colt was bred in Sweden by Goran Falk, who retained ownership and sent the bay to the U.S. over the winter. Nunkeri, from the first crop of Lucky Chucky, was a good second beaten just a half length. Morcredit Blue Chip was third.

Takter sent the $300,000 Muscle Hill-Cressida Hanover colt Canepa Hanover out with purpose in Race 2. Yannick Gingras put him on the lead through the half and then stepped on the gas, resulting in long, powerful strides from the colt around the bend in a :27.4 third panel. He eventually won by 18 lengths in 1:56.1. Canepa Hanover is owned by the partnership of Brittany Farms, Marvin Katz, Brixton Medical and Al Libfeld.

Ake Svanstedt cut the mile and won Race 3 with another Muscle Hill colt, this one a $60,000 Harrisburg yearling out of Cream Puff by the name of Stonebridge Force. He set a leisurely tempo – three quarters in 1:33.4 – before sprinted home in :27.2 for the 2:01.1 win. Sarrasso, Inc. and Laseur, Inc. share ownership.

Pacing fillies came along next and a pair of Rock N Roll Heaven fillies was out strutting their stuff. Heaven On Earth, trained by Scott Di Domenico and driven by Tim Tetrick for Triple D Stables won a stretch duel with Hollyrocker in 1:56.4. She was a bargain $10,000 purchase at Lexington. A few races later, Zip Code Envy won her third straight qualifier for the Takter/Gingras combo – this time it was from off the pace in 1:56.1 with a final quarter of 27.1. Sawyer was second and American Truth third. Zip Code Envy cost $27,000 in Kentucky last fall.

Tony Alagna sent out a couple of nice colts Friday morning, the first is a homebred Rocknroll colt from Cosmo Blue Chip for British client Tom Hill named Rock On The Hill who scored a 1:56.3 front-end win with Tim Tetrick aboard. He looked sharp in his second appearance and held off Manny In Sports through a rousing stretch drive. Alagna came right back with Artspeak, a Western Ideal colt out of The Art Museum who garnered a winning bid of $100,000 from Brittany, Katz, Joe Sbrocco and In The Gym Stables at Lexington last fall. Artspeak, with Scott Zeron driving, won in 1:56.2 with a :26.4 closing quarter.

Royalty For Life qualified again Friday morning and looked stronger this time, as he led all the way and won in 1:53.2 for driver David Miller. His sights are set on next Saturday’s $450,000 Hambletonian Maturity for trainer George Ducharme and owners Al Ross, Ray Campbell Jr. and Paul Fontaine.

Bee A Magician qualified next and put her best hoof forward. She cut the mile and won off by herself in 1:53.1. She closed with a :26.3 final frame under no encouragement from driver Brian Sears.

A mini-Meadowlands Pace was next in Race 11 and JK Endofanera made a statement that he is clearly the horse to beat heading into next week’s eliminations. He strolled along on an easy lead through three quarters in 1:25 and then jetted home in :26 to win by a couple of lengths in 1:51 with Sears motionless in the bike. Lyonssomewhere could not gain from the pocket. National Debt finished third.

Shebestingin wrapped the day up with a 1:51 gate-to-wire win.

At Mohawk, horses aged three years old and older kicked off the session.

Race 1 was won by three-year-old Donato Hanover gelding Fashion Tagman, who came from off the tempo to score a five and a quarter-length victory in 1:57.2 for driver Anthony MacDonald and trainer Carmen Auciello. Race 2 saw the Bob McIntosh-trained and Randy Waples-driven three-year-old Rocknroll Hanover gelding Account Rollover go gate to wire from Post 1 and record a 1:54.3 win by more than nine lengths. Millionaire Alsace Hanover was tops in Race 3 for trainer-driver Tony O’Sullivan, as the six-year-old gelding by The Panderosa cruised to a six-length win in 1:58.3. Like A Prayer gelding Prayer Session won Race 4 for driver James MacDonald and trainer Tony Montini, as the five-year-old recorded a four-length win in 1:56.3.

The rest of the qualifying session was exclusively for two-year-olds after Race 4. A breakdown of all the two-year-old winners appears below.

Race 5
Stanleysontheway (bay colt)
(Muscle Mass-Secret Harmony-Tagliabue)
Trainer – Gregg McNair
Driver – Doug McNair
• The bay colt started from Post 1 and went on to score a one-length, gate-to-wire win in 2:02. Stanleysontheway was making his second qualifying performance for Gregg McNair, who owns the colt. Stanleysontheway is the sixth foal from Secret Harmony, who has produced six-figure earners Commando K ($117,626) and Celebrity Bombay ($180,957).

Race 6
Dream Persuasion (bay colt)
(Taurus Dream-Yankee Persuasion-Mr Vic)
Trainer – Rene Dion
Driver – Sylvain Filion
• After having started from Post 8, Dream Persuasion came on during the back half of the mile and trotted away to a six-length win in 2:03.1. The bay, who was participating his second-ever qualifier, is a homebred of Ecurie Gaetan Bono Inc. of Montreal. Dream Persuasion is the sixth foal from his dam (Yankee Persuasion), who hit the board in 19 of her 24 career starts on the track.

Race 7
Call Me Richard (bay colt)
(Muscle Mass-Olympic Dreams-Andover Hall)
Trainer – Clare Bradshaw
Driver – James MacDonald
• Call Me Richard was making his second career qualifying effort Friday and didn’t appear to mind Post 7, as the Muscle Mass colt cut all the fractions and trotted off to a five and a half-length win in 2:01.2. Call Me Richard is owned by Andrea Arthur of Scotland, Ont. and is the fourth foal out of Olympic Dreams.

Race 8
Sumthintotalkabout (bay filly)
(Muscle Mass-Disco Inferno-Striking Sahbra)
Trainer – Steve Bossence
Driver – Rick Zeron
• After having started from Post 1, Sumthintotalkabout recorded a 10-length, wire-to-wire win in 2:02.4. The mile was the first qualifying effort for the filly, who is the third foal out of Disco Inferno. Sumthintotalkabout is a full sister to $143,770 earner You Rock My World. Disco Inferno has also produced the $235,585 winner Ill Be There.

Race 9
Cash Is Best (bay filly)
(Cash Hall-Exquisitelycrafted-Striking Sahbra)
Trainer – Bob McIntosh
Driver – Randy Waples
• Friday marked the qualifying debut for Cash Is Best. The bay filly sat third before getting up in the lane to score a head victory in 2:02.3. She is the first foal out of Exquisitelycrafted.

Race 10
Wing Flash (brown filly)
(Kadabra-Armbro Everlasting-Andover Hall)
Trainer – Wayne Henry
Driver – Wayne Henry
• After having broken stride in her first-ever qualifier last week, Wing Flash stayed on the trot Friday and mixed it up on the front end. She battled from the final turn onward and dug in for a quarter-length victory in 2:01.1. The $30,000 yearling purchase is the fourth foal out of Armbro Everlasting.

Race 11
Four Buck Chuck (bay colt)
(Lucky Chucky-Bama Hall-Garland Lobell)
Trainer – Gregg McNair
Driver – Doug McNair
• In was his second career qualifier, Four Buck Chuck left from Post 5, cut all the fractions and recorded a one and a half-length win in 2:04. The $19,000 yearling purchase is the seventh foal out of Bama Hall.

Race 12
Alacrity (bay colt)
(Pilgrims Taj-Elena-San Pellegrino)
Trainer – Eddie Green
Driver – Eddie Green
• After having broken stride in his first qualifying effort earlier this moth, Alacrity bounced back Friday morning with a neck victory in 2:02.3. The colt battled for the lead in the final quarter and hit the wire first. Alacrity is the fifth foal out of Elena, who earned $414,000 during her career on the track.

Race 13
Magical Gem (bay filly)
(Majestic Son-Divine Magic-Kadabra)
Trainer – Herb Holland
Driver – Sylvain Filion
• Magical Gem started from Post 4 and erased a four-length deficit in the final quarter to get up for a neck victory in 2:01.2. The filly is now perfect in her two career qualifiers. She is the first foal out of her dam, Divine Magic.

Race 14
Auila (bay filly)
(Deweycheatumnhowe-Poppea-Angus Hall)
Trainer – Eddie Green
Driver – Eddie Green
• Auila started from Post 6 and recorded a wire-to-wire win by three quarters of a length in 2:00.2. Auila, a $60,000 yearling purchase, is the third foal out of her dam, Poppea.

To view the qualifying results from Mohawk’s Friday session, click the following link: Friday Results – Mohawk Racetrack (Qualifiers).

(With files from the Meadowlands)