Strike An Attitude, runner-up in last year’s Breeders Crown but winless in four previous 2011 outings, ended her seasonal drought with a sharp victory in a division of Wednesday’s $206,710 Pennsylvania Sires Stake at
The Meadows. Foxy Lady captured the other split in the event, known as the Romola Hanover, for three-year-old filly pacers.
Strike An Attitude gave the undefeated See You At Peelers a battle in their Breeders Crown meeting, falling one and a quarter lengths short. This year, however, the Bob McIntosh trainee was no better than third — two of those losses came in the tough Fan Hanover — while experiencing what winning driver Dave Palone called “hiccups.”
“This filly was the only one to have a chance to beat See You At Peelers last year,” said Palone, her pilot in the Breeders Crown. “If I could have been one position forward off the last turn, I think we could have won. Bob told me she had some hiccups this year but that she’d trained well. I’d love to see her get sharp and come around for Bob. She seemed 100 per cent tonight, and she has a license to get better and better.”
In the Romola Hanover, Strike An Attitude got away sixth from Post 9, followed the live cover of In Deep Thought and defeated that rival by a length in 1:52.4. Virgin Mary rallied for show.
Robert McIntosh Stables, CSX Stables and Jerry Silva own Strike An Attitude, a daughter of Western Hanover-Strike A Balance, who extended her career bankroll to $635,617.
Foxy Lady dealt with Post 9 in a different way, jetting to the front for Yannick Gingras and thwarting a backside challenge from Fresh Idea to score in a career-best 1:52.2. Fresh Idea saved place, two and three-quarter lengths back, with Jolting Kate third.
“I didn’t care about making the front; I just wasn’t getting away ninth, that’s for sure,” Gingras said. “I was going to let Fresh Idea go down the backside because I didn’t want to battle that long with a good horse on my back and a good horse second over. But in the last turn, Fresh Idea was struggling, and I had a lot of horse.”
Ron Burke trains Foxy Lady, a daughter of Real Desire-Judy Is A Fox, who soared past $200,000 in lifetime earnings, for Burke Racing Stable, Weaver Bruscemi LLC, JJK Stables and Phillip Collura.
In the $22,500 Preferred Handicap Trot, Sir Caviar rebounded from a break in the Titan Cup to notch a front-end victory for Brian Zendt in 1:53.2, a length better than Rembrandt Spur. Eagle Dream finished third.
Leslie Zendt trains Sir Caviar, a five-year-old SJs Caviar-Sierra Flower K gelding, who now boasts $252,241 in career earnings, and owns with Bill Zendt.
Live racing at The Meadows resumes Friday when the card features an $80,000 Pennsylvania Stallion Series Stake for three-year-old colt and gelding pacers. First post is 6:55 p.m.
(The Meadows)