On Tuesday (Aug. 22), Red Mile hosted two $80,000 divisions of the third leg of the Kentucky Sire Stakes and in the split for male pacers, Cannibal and Yannick Gingras turned the tables on Its My Show to win in 1:48.4. Mambacita made every pole a winning one in her Kentucky Sire Stakes division for three-year-old trotting fillies.
Gingras and Cannibal decided to take no prisoners and went straight to lead. The duo clicked off fractions of :27.1, :56 and 1:23.2 with world champion Its My Show (Scott Zeron) tracking in second. Its My Show made his bid in the lane with a :25.1 final panel, but The Adios winner would not be denied and paced his own final quarter-mile in :25.2 to outlast his rival. A Cool Moment (Joey Putnam) was third.
Trained by Nancy Takter, Cannibal improved his record to 9-7-1-0 on the season and has now earned $429,978 in two seasons of competition. The Sweet Lou colt is owned by Diamond Creek Racing and was bred by Diamond Creek Farm. He paid $6.16 as the second choice.
Cannibal is the only horse to defeat Its My Show twice in 2023.
Mambacita and Zeron followed Cannibal’s plan of attack and were on top right after the wings folded off the gate in her division. The daughter of Tactical Landing established splits of :27.4, :56.1 and 1:24.2. Walner Payton (Dexter Dunn) gave chase all the way around the red clay oval, but Mambacita trotted a :26.2 final split to repel her foe by a half-length in 1:51. Caviart Gwen (Andrew McCarthy) was third.
Trained by Tony Alagna, Mambacita collected her second consecutive victory in the Bluegrass. She now sports a resume of 11-5-2-0 in 2023 and boosted her career bankroll to $713,688. Mambacita was bred by Crawford Farms, who also co-owns the filly with Alagna Racing and Pryde Stables Inc.
She paid $6.16 to win as the public’s second choice.
Admiral Hill Wins Three Straight In Commonwealth Series
Admiral Hill (Dunn) was victorious in the first $30,000 Commonwealth Series division for three-year-old male pacers. It was the Sweet Lou gelding’s third consecutive win over this surface and was in a lifetime best 1:49. Admiral Hill is trained by Chris Ryder and competes as a homebred for Tom Hill. He paid $11.66 to win.
Combustion (Todd McCarthy) scored his second win of the year with a 1:49.4 triumph in the second division for male pacers. Brett Pelling is responsible for the conditioning duties for the son of Captaintreacherous. The colt was bred by Brittany Farms and is owned by Diamond Creek Racing, Thomas and Scott Dillion and Cooper Silva Stables. Combustion paid $3.44 to win.
Believe U Me (Gingras) won the only $30,000 third leg division of the Commonwealth Series for three-year-old filly trotters in a lifetime best 1:53. Trained by Ron Burke, the daughter of Muscle Mass was bred by Wiseman Farms and is owned by William Donovan. Believe U Me paid $17.52 to win.
Svanstedt Scores Milestone Win In Golden Rod Series
Ake Svanstedt celebrated his 1,000th North American training win with Cyberspace, who was driven to a maiden-breaking victory in 1:52 by Tim Tetrick in one of two $15,000 Golden Rod Series splits for sophomore trotting fillies.
Chulada and Andrew McCarthy won the second $15,000 Golden Rod Series division in 1:54.1 for trainer Tony Alagna.
McCarthy also guided the Carter Pinkse-trained Kaptain Karlos to a 1:50 victory the first division of the Golden Rod Series for three-year-old male pacers.
Cant Stop Lou and Gingras captured the second division in 1:49.2 for trainer Ron Burke.
Gingras led all drivers with three stakes victories on the 16-race card.
Red Mile offers a rich buffet of wagering items including a 20-cent Pick-6 with 15 per cent takeout, a 50-cent Pick-5 with an industry low 12 per cent takeout, a Super Hi-5 15 per cent takeout, and Pick-4 events, with a $10,000 guaranteed pool in conjunction with the U.S. Trotting Association’s Strategic Wagering Program.
Red Mile races on a Sunday, Monday, Tuesday schedule with a 1 p.m. EDT post time through Oct. 8. Free program pages are available at the Red Mile website in addition to race replays and a daily livestream of each card.
(With files from Red Mile)