Sippinonsearoc, the sport’s fastest two-year-old ever, demonstrated his affinity for the red clay with a 1:48.2 victory in the $109,589 fourth leg of the Kentucky Championship Series for sophomore male pacers on Tuesday, Sept. 2 at The Red Mile for his fourth consecutive triumph.
The world champion equalled his lifetime best, hitting the line a half-length in front of second choice Lite Up The World (James MacDonald) for conditioner Ron Burke.
Leaving from post seven in the field of eight after the scratch of last year’s Metro Pace winner Fallout, Sippinonsearoc got away in third for the first portion of the event as Lite Up The World established the first split of :27.1. Sippinonsearoc wrested command for Yannick Gingras after the first fraction and went to the half in :54.4 with the former leader hot on his hooves. The colt, however, was not about to relinquish control to any rival as he passed the three-quarter pole in 1:22.4.
Despite a strong last quarter-mile in :25.2 by Lite Up The World, he was unable to catch the leader, who kicked home in :25.3. Harrisburg Heist and Todd McCarthy were third. All three of Burke’s entries were in the top four as Captain Arturovico (Dexter Dunn) rounded out the superfecta.
Sippinonsearoc, bred by Trent Stohler Stable Inc. and Alesha Binkley, improved to 22-11-4-2 and boosted his bankroll to $1,113,416. The colt did not compete in the third leg of this series but returned to the Bluegrass State after a dominant performance in a fifth-round division of the Ohio Sires Stakes at Northfield Park. After a slow start to his sophomore campaign, he has not lost since a fourth-place finish in the Adios in July behind Prince Hal Hanover. He was second to stablemate and divisional leader Louprint in last year’s Championship Series, as well as the Breeders Crown. He is owned by Burke Racing Stable LLC, Weaver Bruscemi LLC, RAS Racing LLC, and Knox Services Inc.
Sent off as the heavy favourite, the colt paid $2.34 to his supporters.
The 14-race card also included divisions of fourth-round action in the Kentucky Commonwealth Series, the Kentucky Golden Rod Series, and the Kentucky Wildcat Series.
With Todd McCarthy holding the lines, Fusion found another gear headed for the finish line and captured his third consecutive victory in a lifetime-best 1:50.3 in the $41,096 Commonwealth Series event. He hustled to the lead early from post eight before being relegated to the pocket, then came up the cones with a big stretch kick to score by 1-1/2 lengths for trainer Brett Pelling. Delray Beach (Dunn) came in second, and Making History (Marvin Luna) was third.
Fusion, the son of champions Always B Miki and Pure Country, is the defending victor of this series and stepped up in class for Tuesday's score after two wins in the Golden Rod Series. He competes as a homebred for Diamond Creek Racing. He has earned $206,627 lifetime from a record of 13-8-2-0. The colt was the third wagering choice in the field of eight and paid $14.42 to win.
Dunn and Higher Ground captured the $20,548 Golden Rod dash in 1:50.1 by 2-3/4 lengths over Lafitte (Anibal Borjas), followed by Falkirk (Todd McCarthy). It was a new speed badge for the winning son of Always B Miki-Shebesailin as he increased his earnings to $138,090. He is trained by Tony Alagna for Robert Leblanc and Pryde Stables Inc. The gelding possesses a resume of 16-3-5-1. He paid $4.16 to win.
Somelousomewhere (Tetrick) collected his first win of 2025 by a neck over second-choice Do What U Do (Andrew McCarthy) in a lifetime best 1:49.3. Betting On Caesar (Scott Zeron) completed the ticket. Trained by Mike Simons, the son of Sweet Lou-Somstreetsomwhere is now 12-3-2-0 and has earned $41,470 in purse money. Simons co-owns him with A P Racing. He returned $5.20 to win.
(The Red Mile)