Rock N Roll Heaven, with Dan Dube in the sulky, mounted a powerful stretch rally and scored a decisive 2-1/2 length win in 1:48.4 in the $500,000 Battle of Brandywine for three-year-old pacing colts and geldings at Harrah’s Chester Racetrack on Sunday afternoon
. The clocking established a new track and stakes record, despite being contested over a sloppy racing surface.
Dube allowed Rock N Roll Heaven to settle in off the pace as World Of Rocknroll (George Brennan) cut the quarter mile in a crisp :26.1. Passing the half mile, which was timed in :53.4, Delmarvalous (Brian Sears) made a first over move and gradually gained on the leader until he reached the top entering the final turn. One More Laugh (Tim Tetrick) followed the cover and Rock N Roll Heaven joined the outside flow as the field hit the three-quarter mile mark in 1:21. As the field straightened out for the drive to the wire One More Laugh had made the lead, but a fresh Rock N Roll Heaven uncorked a strong rally and blew by the leader and drew clear to the wire. One More Laugh held well for the place spot and We Will See (Brett Miller) took third.
Tim Tetrick, who drove runner-up One More Laugh, had praise for both his horse and Rock N Roll Heaven.
“My horse raced great, and I sure can’t take anything away from Dan’s horse. He was just the better horse today.” Tetrick added, “We gave him (Rock N Roll Heaven) the trip I wanted to get.”
Dube said that he let the early movement of the race dictate his strategy behind Rock N Roll Heaven. “I could have raced him either close early or from behind. But when I saw a few horses leaving, I decided to take back and try to work out a trip. I knew if I could get behind One More Laugh that he would carry me to the stretch, and he did. My horse actually won pretty easy.”
Trained by Bruce Saunders and owned by Frank Bellino, Rock N Roll Heaven notched his 11th victory in 21 lifetime outings and elevated his bankroll to more than $1.5 million.
The $500,000 Colonial Trot, for three-year-old trotting colts and geldings, saw Lucky Chucky score a dominating win over a track labeled as “good”.
The Windsongs Legacy colt wrested command just prior to the opening quarter mile of 28.1 and led the rest of the way, passing the midway point of the mile in :57.3 and the three panels in 1:25.2 en route to an 8-1/4 length tally in a stakes, track, and world record-equaling time of 1:53.
Driver John Campbell underscored the ease in which Lucky Chucky won.
“I kicked the plugs out on the backstretch and he really responded well,” said Campbell . “Once we straightened out, there was no catching him.”
When asked if he believed that Lucky Chucky had an affinity for smaller ovals, the Hall of Famer replied, “Not at all. The size of the track really makes no difference to him. He raced well over this oval last year and we had no concerns over the footing today.”
Lucky Chucky, who is owned by SGS Partners, Perretti Racing Stable and Lindy Racing Stable and trained by Chuck Sylvester, increased his seasonal earnings to $698,972 in taking down the lion’s share of the large Colonial purse.
Temple of Doom (David Miller) finished second with Cassis (Tim Tetrick) lasting for the show spot.
Put On A Show did just that in taking the $350,000 Valley Forge for three-year-old pacing fillies. The daughter of Rocknroll Hanover blazed the mile in 1:50.1 despite the sloppy track. Driver Tim Tetrick moved his filly quickly to the lead at the quarter mile mark, which was time in :26.2, then yielded the top to Dancinwiththestarz (Brian Sears) and sat a pocket trip as that rival led the field past the half in :53 and three panels in 1:22. Coming out of the final turn, Tetrick moved Put On A Show to the outside and she steadily wore down the leader to register a 2-1/4 length victory in 1:50.1. Dancinwiththestarz held gamely for second with Hulas Z Tam (Pat Lachance) finishing 3-3/4 lengths farther back in third.
“I wanted to beat Sears to the top,” Tetrick said. “I wanted to make him work for it so he wouldn’t get away easy. Everything worked out good. It’s not often you see big fractions to the half like :53.”
The victory, which established a new track record for three-year-old pacing fillies, was the eighth of the season for Put On A Show, who is owned by Craig Henderson and Richard and Joanne Young and is trained by Chris Ryder. The win pushed her lifetime earnings to more than $1.4 million.
The Super Stakes Sunday card at Chester has become an annual event which attracts many of the best horses in harness racing.
(Harrah’s Chester Racetrack)