Well Said blazed his way to a 1:47.3 victory in the $1 million Meadowlands Pace on Saturday night at the Meadowlands Racetrack and in doing so became
the eighth colt in history to win both the Pepsi North America Cup and Meadowlands Pace.
Fresh off a sharp 1:49.2 victory in his elimination, Well Said and driver Ron Pierce got away fifth from Post 3 as Chasin Racin (Brian Sears) settled on top ahead of Ideal Danny (Yannick Gingras) at the :26.1 opening quarter. From there, Art Colony (John Campbell) advanced to the lead with Well Said floating up alongside and clearing at the half in :53.2.
“It was a big move, but the colt did it real easy so there was no problem with that,” said Pierce, who won last year's Pace with Art Official over Somebeachsomewhere as well as the 1997 edition with Dream Away.
Down the backstretch, Pierce stepped on the accelerator and the heavy 2-5 favourite responded reaching three-quarters in 1:20.2. Well Said powered home in :27.1 to win the 2009 edition of the Meadowlands Pace by six lengths in a career-best 1:47.3.
Vintage Master (Daniel Dube) finished second and If I Can Dream (George Brennan) rounded out the top three.
"The colt felt super," continued Pierce. "I knew he had another 27-second quarter in him. I chased him in the lane just to make sure he stayed focused. He has had a habit of waiting for horses when he gets to the top. I never touched him with the whip. I just hit the disc [of the wheel] and kept his mind on it.
"Around the first turn, I wanted to sit him in but Steve [trainer Steve Elliott] had him too sharp. He was looking around at Dave Palone's whip [driving Schoolkids] and I just said there's no sense in messing around, we're going for $1 million. John [Campbell and Art Colony] went to the top and I just kind of moseyed on up there to the lead and just kept on going. This colt was wicked. I would say he's by far the fastest colt I've ever driven in my life."
Trainer Steve Elliott picked up his second Meadowlands Pace win in four years. He won in 2006 with Artistic Fella.
"He's been sharp and good horses make trainers look good," Elliott said. "I think he's better with a target, but as he showed tonight, he can win either way. He has the Adios [at The Meadows] next week if we choose to go there. He will definitely be back here for the Holmes [August 8 at the Meadowlands]."
Purchased at the Harrisburg sale for $240,000, Well Said is owned by Jeffrey Snyder of New York and Lothlorien of Cheltenham, Ont. The Western Hanover – Must See colt, who won the North America Cup on June 27 at Mohawk Racetrack, is now four-for-five in his sophomore campaign with over $1.3 million earned. The nine-time winner now boasts $1,914,627 in lifetime earnings.
Featured on the Meadowlands Pace undercard was a $50,000 Open Pace for three-year-olds, which saw driver Yannick Gingras and Vertigo Hanover prevail in a career-best clocking of 1:50.1 for trainer Monte Gelrod and the Uncirculated Stable of Brantford, Ont. and JL Benson Stables of Fort Lauderdale, Florida.
Zee Barber (Brian Sears) and Vertigo Hanover barreled off the gate from Post 7 and 8, but with the inner advantage Zee Barber settled on top reaching the first quarter in a strong :26.1. After getting away fourth, the 2-5 favourite Drop Red (George Brennan) advanced to the front past the half in :55 and led the way to three-quarters in 1:23 with Straight Shooting (Tim Tetrick) hot on his heels.
Heading into the final turn, Straight Shooting matched strides with the pacesetter and gained the upper hand in the stretch, but Vertigo Hanover plowed down the lane and with a :26.4 final kicker, the son of The Panderosa–Varbo poked his neck in front for the 12-1 upset. Drop Red finished third.
Vertigo Hanover scored his third win of the season in nine starts and lifted his earnings to $78,066. The winner of five races has banked over $200,000 lifetime.
Coming off a 1:48.4 victory in his conditioning assignment last week at the Big M, Share The Delight stepped up to win the $37,500 Preferred Pace for four-year-olds tonight for driver Yannick Gingras and trainer Linda Toscano.
Golden Receiver (Brian Sears) rolled to the front and opened up by two lengths at the first quarter in :26.3. Share The Delight, however, was on the move early and the 8-5 favourite swooped up from third to take over. The four-year-old son of Bettors Delight – Angels Share led the field past the half in :54.3 and three-quarters in 1:23.1 while Southwestern Dream (John Campbell) applied pressure on the outside. Down the stretch, Share The Delight dug in and held off a late rush from Riggins (Tim Tetrick) to win by a neck in 1:50.1. Golden Receiver slide up the rail to finish third ahead of Southwestern Dream.
Owned by The Four Horsemen Stable of Englewood and Algonquin Farms of Centennial, Colorado, Share The Delight scored his seventh win in 16 tries this season lifting his earnings to $106,600. The 14-time winner has earned $485,462 in his career.
To view Saturday’s harness racing results, click here.
(With files from NJSEA)