Hunt Off The Press scorched Monticello Raceway, setting a 1:53.1 divisional track record for two-year-old male pacers in the $153,562 New York Sire Stakes on Monday, July 28.
Trained by Jared Bako and driven by Tyler Buter, the Huntsville-Off The Press gelding lowered the track record for two-year-old male pacers by one full second.
Leaving from the inside post, Hunt Off The Press avoided some early commotion to his outside with three starters misfiring and proceeded to pocket Casper The Ghost (Mark MacDonald) through the first turn while 1-5 favourite Fragment (Jason Bartlett) pressed on three-wide and made the lead by the opening quarter pole, which was reached in :27.3.
The bettors' choice led the field of nine in single file alignment with the early breakers all back on stride past the half in :56 and headed to three-quarters in 1:24.3. Hunt Off The Press stayed in the hunt while Ideal Rebel (Jordan Stratton) was flushed first-up by Lakewood Nick (Dan Rawlings) from mid-pack, but the latter two remained well off the top pair.
Turning for home, it was a two-horse race with Fragment clear by 2-1/2 lengths, but Hunt Off The Press rallied from behind and went by in deep stretch with a :28.1 final quarter sprint to prevail by 1-1/4 lengths. Lakewood Nick was the best of the rest in third, 11 lengths behind.
Hunt Off The Press notched his second victory to go along with a pair of runner-up finishes in his first four career starts -- all in Sire Stakes action. A $47,297 yearling purchase at the Lexington Selected Sale, he's earned $166,389 to date for owner Blue Chip Bloodstock of Wallkill, New York.
A pair of $27,397 Excelsior Series divisions contested on Monday were won by the Kevin Lare-trained Southwind Iron (American Ideal-Southwind Inertia) in a career-best 1:56.2 clocking with Dan Rawlings driving and Killing Joke (American Ideal - Q T Pie Hanover), who broke his maiden in 1:55.3, with Ridge Warren working out the winning trip for the Janice Connor stable.
Monticello Raceway reported that the day's 10-race card handled $451,724 USD.
(Standardbred Canada with files from Monticello Raceway; photo of Hunt Off The Press from a previous win)