It may have taken 11 weeks, but there is officially a new leader atop the 2018 Hambletonian Society/Breeders Crown Standardbred Poll.
This past Saturday (August 4), Canadian-based trotting filly Atlanta became just the 14th filly in the 93-year history of the Hambletonian to defeat the boys and capture harness racing's richest prize for three-year-olds. She put forth a wire-to-wire performance in the final, as she pinned a one-length victory on her male foes in a sharp 1:50.4 at the Meadowlands Racetrack.
For a complete recap of Atlanta’s Hambletonian win, click here. For a complete recap of Hambletonian Day at the ‘Big M,’ click here.
Courtesy of her Hambo win, Atlanta attracted the most points (335) in Week 11 of the Hambletonian Society/Breeders Crown Standardbred Poll. In taking over the top spot, Atlanta has relegated her fellow trotting distaff star, Hannelore Hanover, to the No. 2 spot.
On Saturday at the Meadowlands, Hannelore Hanover tasted defeat for the first time this season, as she finished a half-length back in third to Marion Marauder in the $286,650 John Cashman Memorial, which was contested at the distance of one and one-eighth miles and was clocked in 2:06. Hannelore Hanover attracted 310 points in Week 11 voting.
Courtesy of her 1:50, wire-to-wire win in the $500,000 Hambletonian Oaks, Manchego has vaulted herself back up into the poll’s top 10. After having been just short of the top 10 in Week 10 voting, Manchego has now leaped up to third on the poll, as she attracted 229 points in the voting.
The results from Week 11 of the poll appear below.
(Rank – Horse [first-place votes] – Total Points – Previous)
1 – Atlanta (23) – 335 – 4
2 – Hannelore Hanover (11) – 310 – 1
3 – Manchego – 229 – N/A
4 – Shartin N (1) – 224 – 7
5 – McWicked – 176 – 2
6 – Lather Up – 123 – 8
7 – Ariana G – 96 – 3
8 – Marion Marauder – 87 – N/A
9 – Courtly Choice – 77 – 5
10 – Kissin In The Sand – 75 – 6
Also: Youaremycandygirl (45); Stay Hungry (37); Western Joe (20); Dont Letem (19); Crystal Fashion (15); Phaetosive, Six Pack (11); Dorsoduro Hanover, Wolfgang (6); Jimmy Freight, Plunge Blue Chip, Sonnet Grace (4); Melodies Major (3); Dream Together, Filibuster Hanover (2); Bit Of A Legend N, De Los Cielos Deo, Fox Valley Gemini, The Ice Dutchess (1).
The Hambletonian Society/Breeders Crown poll is voted on by harness racing media representatives that cover North American Standardbred racing.
The rankings are based on the votes of harness racing media representatives on a 10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1 basis.
The Hambletonian Society/Breeders Crown poll does not determine Horse of the Year. The U.S. Harness Writers Association votes in December on all Dan Patch Award division winners plus Trotter of the Year, Pacer of the Year and Horse of the Year. The Dan Patch Awards are separate from the O'Brien Awards, which recognize Canada's top Standardbreds of a given racing season.