The 2024 Massachusetts Breeders Stakes kicked off at Plainridge Park on Monday afternoon, Sept. 23 with three-year-olds of both sexes and gaits lining up for their share of the $412,161 in available purses.
All four two-year-old Massachusetts champions were on hand to defend their titles with Every Mans Dream, Keep Asking and Rocknroll Lou all getting a jump on a second straight title.
The stars of the day included drivers Yannick Gingras and Scott Zeron and trainers Ron Burke and George Ducharme, who all had two wins in stakes action on Monday.
In the first of two $54,054 split pacing filly divisions, Every Mans Dream (Always B Miki-Lindys Nightmare) set a new stakes record after she registered a statement win in her non-betting event.
Yannick Gingras got away third with Every Mans Dream as Beantown Ace (Nick Graffam) set the tempo to the half in :57.3. Every Mans Dream was out and rolling past that station and took the lead at three-quarters. From there, Every Mans Dream was in a race of her own as she opened up by 11 lengths and broke the beam in 1:52.1, setting the new stakes record.
The victory was the second consecutive win for Every Mans Dream, who is owned by Thomas and Scott Dillon and trained by Ron Burke. Lindy Farms of Connecticut bred the winner.
The second three-year-old pacing filly split went to the 1-9 favourite, Color Me Sweet (So Surreal-Letherriptaterchip), who led the whole race by an open length for driver Shawn Gray before turning for home and stretching out to a 2-1/2-length victory over Going My Way (Bruce Ranger) in 1:56.1 to claim her fourth consecutive win.
Color Me Sweet ($2.10) is owned by her breeder/trainer, Alicia Gray, in partnership with Sarah Brown.
A single $101,351 division for three-year-old trotting colts and geldings was next and Keep Asking (Chapter Seven-Sensibility) picked up where he left off in this series last year.
Scott Zeron pushed Keep Asking off the gate and took the lead before they entered the turn. They then set fractions of :27.2, :57.1 and 1:25.3 before the pocket-sitting Intl Blockade (Bruce Ranger) pulled to advance towards the leader. Keep Asking and Intl Blockade then matched strides around the last turn and entered the stretch dead even. But three pylons in, Intl Blockade made a break leaving Keep Asking by himself to cross the wire on top by 1-1/4 lengths over International Law (Marcus Miller) in 1:54.2.
The win pushed Keep Asking's lifetime earnings to $581,507 for owners W J Donovan, Joe Sbrocco, Jim Winske and George Ducharme, who also trains the winner. Donovan, Sbrocco and Winske bred Keep Asking. He paid $2.40 to win.
The trotting fillies were up next in their $101,351 event and International Gift (International Moni-Box Of Gifts) got her second straight win at Plainridge.
Scott Zeron left with International Gift and led the single-file field through quarters of :28.4, :58.2 and 1:27.2. At that last station, Yannick Gingras tipped Dawn Of Lindy from third and blasted towards the leader. International Gift and Dawn Of Lindy trotted side-by-side around the last turn and into the stretch where International Gift got a slight advantage to beat Dawn Of Lindy and a fast-closing Sassy Zaza (Brett Beckwith) in 1:55.4.
International Gift ($3.40) is owned by her trainer, George Ducharme, in partnership with Winters Racing and Nicola Oliva. Ducharme and Oliva also bred the filly.
The last $101,351 dash for the day was for pacing colts and geldings and Rocknroll Lou (Sweet Lou-Beautiful Lady) flexed his muscle in his first win of the year.
Yannick Gingras took a gradual overland route to the front but eventually took control at the :27.3 quarter. With Bang Ah Uey (Jim Hardy) sitting right in the pocket, Rocknroll Lou got to the half in :56.1 before being challenged by Poverty Sucks (Nick Graffam) to three-quarters in 1:25. Rocknroll Lou paced clear after Poverty Sucks broke off the turn before Bang Ah Uey tipped at the top of the lane to take his shot. But Rocknroll Lou was not to be beaten as he coasted home by nearly two lengths in a new lifetime best 1:52.4.
Rocknroll Lou ($2.80) is owned by Thomas and Scott Dillon and is trained by Ron Burke. Lester Gelardi and Anthony Passafaro bred the winner.
Racing resumes at Plainridge Park on Tuesday, Sept. 24 at 2 p.m. and the card will feature the first two-year-old legs of the 2024 Massachusetts Breeders Stakes.
(With files from Standardbred Owners of Massachusetts)