It’s as simple as this: he’s a win machine. Shorething Fashion took his fourth straight victory at Plainridge Park in the $14,000 Open trotting feature on Friday afternoon (September 27).
Driver Nick Graffam released Shorething Fashion from the gate and shot right to the front, opening up a two-length lead in :27.4. From there, he coasted unencumbered to the half in :57.1 and three-quarters in 1:25.3, maintaining a gapped advantage over Neverdie (Mitchell Cushing), who was trying to stay close through the journey.
Rounding the final bend, Graffam held firm lines and sat still while Shorething Fashion continued to trot strong on the point heading into the stretch. Quicksilver Kemp (Drew Monti) joined Neverdie in late pursuit down the lane but Shorething Fashion was the strongest at the wire, winning by 1-1/4 lengths in 1:55.2.
As mentioned, it was the fourth straight win, but also the fifth win in the last six starts for Shorething Fashion ($4.40), who pushed his earnings to $40,604 this year. The five-year-old gelded son of Andover Hall-Tyg Hanover is owned by Bob McHugh and Mike Eaton, who also trains the winner.
The secondary feature was the $12,000 conditioned trot that was won by Whiskey Lindy (Drew Monti), who led the entire race and held off a late-charging Hs Marcia (Drew Campbell) to win by a head in 1:57. The Lindy Racing Stable owns Whiskey Lindy ($2.80), who is trained by Domenico Cecere.
The Massachusetts Sire Stakes kicks off its 2019 season this Sunday (September 29) at Plainridge Park with the three-year-olds competing in four divisions. The four-week series is worth an estimated $1.8 million and culminates with eight finals with an estimated value of $100,000 each on Monday, Oct. 28 at The Ridge.
Post time for Sunday afternoon is 2 p.m. and there will be a $49,624 carryover in the Wicked Hi-5 wager in race six.
(Standardbred Owners of Massachusetts)