North America Cup champion Louprint returned to action during the Tuesday morning, Aug. 12 qualifying session at The Meadows.
After recovering from an emergency medical procedure in early July, the Ron Burke-trained sophomore star Louprint won his first qualifier in just over five weeks with regular reinsman Ronnie Wrenn Jr. After tracking a trio of early leavers through opening fractions of :28 and :57.4, Wrenn made his move on the backstretch and Louprint swept to command with ease. He took off heading to three-quarters in 1:26 and sprinted home in :26.2 to win by 10-3/4 lengths in 1:52.2. His stakes-winning filly stablemate Rose and Mike Wilder were second, with older mare La Mambacita third for Case Bateson.
“He was vicious,” said Burke said after the qualifying race on Tuesday. “I couldn’t have been happier.
“I could tell the middle of last week that he was himself again. His weight is back to where it was, his energy level is back. He’s back. If he wasn’t, he would never have qualified. I wasn’t going to force him to do anything he isn’t ready to do.
“He was really good.”
The Dan Patch Award winner for best two-year-old male pacer in 2024, Louprint is unbeaten in five sophomore starts this year, with his last triumph in the $1 million Pepsi North America Cup on June 14 at Woodbine Mohawk Park. He was sidelined ahead of a planned start in the Meadowlands Pace and rushed into emergency surgery to remove a testicle.
Burke told Trot Insider prior to Louprint's qualifier that he is targeting a racing return in the Aug. 30 fourth leg of the Pennsylvania Sire Stakes at The Meadows.
“Right now, we’re leaning toward officially working him out next Tuesday during the card at The Meadows,” said Burke after the qualifier. “Then it will be Sire Stakes, Sire Stakes and then the [Little Brown] Jug. With how his year shook out, the biggest thing is to have him ready for the Jug. I think he’s ready today. He [qualified] so easily.”
The millionaire son of Sweet Lou out of Rockin Racer is owned by Burke Racing Stable, Weaver Bruscemi, Phil Collura and Larry Karr.
(Standardbred Canada with quotes from USTA)