Three divisional leaders — Tall Drink Hanover, Warrawee Ubeaut, Stonebridge Soul — each looked to burnish her credentials in Monday’s Romola Hanover, a Pennsylvania Sire Stakes stop for sophomore filly pacers at the Meadows.
Tall Drink Hanover and Warrawee Ubeaut did just that, but Stonebridge Soul fell to 15-1 outsider Sweet Lucy Lou.
Tall Drink Hanover has an impeccable pedigree — she’s by Captaintreacherous out of the Dragon Again mare Take Into Account — yet Alagna Racing LLC, Marvin Katz and Myron Bell’s Riverview Racing LLC were able to pick her up at Harrisburg for only $35,000.
“Thirty-three fillies by Captaintreacherous sold the first day of the sale, and she was the next-to-last,” Bell said. “People who’d already bought fillies weren’t looking for her; we were. We were lucky enough to get a $100,000 filly for $35,000.”
Indeed, she entered the Romola Hanover off three straight victories, all stakes, that included a 1:48 mile in the Shady Daisy at the Meadowlands, fastest this year by a three-year-old filly. On Monday, she got away third, gobbled up the field when Andrew McCarthy asked her to, and scored in 1:50.1, lifting her career bankroll to $573,556. Rockn Philly was second, 3-3/4 lengths back, with Pretty N Fast third.
“I think she’ll be good from here on out,” said winning trainer Tony Alagna. “She actually was good early but didn’t have much go her way. She’s very versatile and can do it a lot of different ways.”
Warrawee Ubeaut, last year’s Dan Patch Award winner, was just as impressive, stalking Alagna’s Treacherous Reign from the pocket and blowing by late to triumph for Yannick Gingras in 1:49.2, 3 widening lengths better than Treacherous Reign. Trillions Hanover completed the ticket.
“All this year we’ve been working to make her a complete racehorse and not just go down the road and be hot,” said Ron Burke, who trains the daughter of Sweet-Lou-Great Memories. “You saw that today. She sits in, does what she’s told and then reacts. By the end of the year I still think she’s the best filly.”
Warrawee Ubeaut now has banked $945,053 for Burke Racing Stable, Phillip Collura, J&T Silva-Purnell&Libby and Weaver Bruscemi LLC.
When 1-5 favourite Stonebridge Soul led narrowly out of the final turn, it seemed victory was secure as her chief challenger, Sweet Lucy Lou, hadn’t won a stake all year. But the daughter of Sweet Lou-Ultimate Bet still had pace aplenty, and when Eric Goodell found a seam for her between horses, she poured through and edged Stonebridge Soul by a neck in a career-best 1:51.4. Odds On St Lucie earned show.
“The last three-eighths is her thing,” Goodell said. “That’s when she starts getting into gear. She paces as hard at the wire as she can. (Going between horses) was important because she runs in. I didn’t want to have to work her around horses because she might not have got by.”
Robert Cleary conditions Sweet Lucy Lou, who extended her lifetime bankroll to $130,034, for Royal Wire Products.
The top fillies in the division will reconvene Sept. 7 at The Meadows for the PASS championship. On that date, the track will host all four $250,000 PASS championships and all four $50,000 consolations.
Monday’s program also featured a $40,000 PA Stallion Series stake, with Demi Hill and Sweet Cherry taking the splits.
Mike Wilder collected three wins on the 14-race card.
Tuesday’s program at The Meadows features three rich wagering opportunities: a $5,000 total-pool guarantee in the Pick 4 (races 3-6); a $4,724.08 carryover in the Pick 5 (races 2-6); a $660.96 carryover in the final-race Super Hi-5. First post is 1:05 p.m.
(Meadows Standardbred Owners Association)