The durable Explosive Matter gelding Scirocco Rob won the $16,200 fast-class featured trot at Harrah’s Philadelphia on Thursday afternoon (Sept. 1) in 1:54.
Corey Callahan left hard with the Mark Silva trainee to get around a fast-starting Dees Red Delicious, with favoured JL Cruze having to back off to tuck during the :27 opener. Scirocco Rob then got a big breather to the half in :56.4 and resisted any further challenges through a 1:25.1 three-quarters and through the stretch, the biggest one coming from pocket-sitting Dees Red Delicious, who came up a half-length shy. Kathleen Whitaker owns the seven-year-old gelding, who went over $700,000 in career earnings.
The Creatine gelding Take All Comers, a $100,000+ winner in each of his three years of racing, quarter-moved past a :27.2 initial split for "Team Fashion Schooner" -- driver Tim Tetrick and trainer Jim Campbell -- then posted mid-splits of :56.4 and 1:24.2 en route to a 1:53 triumph. Pocket-sitter Star Razor was 4-3/4 lengths back at the finish behind the winner of more than $500,000 lifetime, a half-brother to Next Level Stuff, for Runthetable Stables.
Tetrick, the meet’s leading driver who got his 13,000th lifetime victory early on the card Wednesday at Philly, is already at 13,008 wins after following up on Wednesday’s five-win performance with four more visits to the local Victory Lane on Thursday before having to scurry north to The Meadowlands.
The 2021 U.S. Harness Horse of the Year, Test Of Faith, makes her first purse start ever at Harrah’s Philadelphia (she’s won four qualifiers here), being assigned the outside in a field of six in a $22,500 fast-class distaff handicap pace that will provide a quick start to Friday’s local program. On Sunday, the finest Pennsylvania two-year-olds will compete in their Pennsylvania Sire Stakes Championships and consolation events. The card, worth $1.3 million in all, also includes a $40,000 Invitational featuring Allywag Hanover, Ruthless Hanover and American Dealer N. Friday’s racing begins at 12:25 p.m., while Sunday’s racing will get underway at 12:40 p.m.
(With files from PHHA/Harrah's Philadelphia)