Captain Albano, who set the track record at Batavia Downs in his most recent start, will go for his third win in a row on Saturday, Sept. 6 when he faces nine rivals in the $250,000 USD Jim Ewart Memorial (Grade 2) at Eldorado Scioto Downs.
Captain Albano is one of three Dan Patch Award winners in the field of older male pacers, along with Bythemissal and Abuckabett Hanover. In addition, past Ewart Memorial winners Little Rocket Man, the defending champ, and Charlie May are in the group of 10.
Saturday’s card also features the $250,000 USD Charlie Hill Memorial (Grade 2) for older trotters as well as Ohio Sire Stakes action for two and three-year-olds.
Captain Albano heads to the Ewart Memorial off his 1:50.1 triumph in the Robert J. Kane Memorial Invitational (Grade 3) on Aug. 23 at Batavia Downs. The time broke the track’s all-time pacing record of 1:50.2 set by American Dealer N in the 2022 Kane.
In his previous start on Aug. 16, Captain Albano won the Always B Miki Invitational (Grade 3) at Mohegan Pennsylvania’s Pocono Downs in 1:48.2.
For the season, the four-year-old stallion has won three of seven races and earned $268,814 for trainer Noel Daley and owners Patricia Stable, L A Express And Sjoblom Inc., Sjoblom Racing Inc., and Michael Dolan. Lifetime, the son of Captaintreacherous-Angelou has captured 22 of 34 starts and banked nearly $2.26 million. He received Dan Patch Awards following his two and three-year-old campaigns.
“You never know how they’re going to come back at four, but the only time I was disappointed with him was his one start at The Meadowlands,” said Daley, referring to a fourth-place finish in a division of the Sam McKee Memorial on Aug. 2. “He wasn’t any good that day, but he’s been great in his next two starts. I’m real happy with him and where we’re at now.
“He’s just a medium-sized horse, but he’s a real bulldog of a horse. He ended last year as good as he’d been all year. He appears to be a horse that gets better as the year goes on, which is always good.”
Daley considered sending Captain Albano to the Canadian Pacing Derby at Woodbine Mohawk Park, which contested its eliminations on Aug. 23 and final on Aug. 30, but decided to keep the horse in the U.S. based on racing opportunities leading up to the Breeders Crown at Mohawk in October.
“I can race him two weeks and then skip a week all the way through to the Breeders Crown, so I decided to do it this way,” said Daley. “We can keep him in a good little routine here.”
Captain Albano and driver Todd McCarthy will leave from the second row’s post 10 in the Ewart Memorial.
“We’ve got the second line, but Todd will work something out there,” said Daley. “[Captain Albano] has got an advantage on the smaller tracks because he gets around them so well when some of them don’t. If he’s having a good day, I don’t have to worry about him because I know I’m competitive with anyone.”
Abuckabett Hanover, coming off a win in the Open at Mohawk on Aug. 30, will start from post eight. Bythemissal, who equalled Canada’s all-time pacing record of 1:46.4 while winning his elimination of the Canadian Pacing Derby at Mohawk, will leave from post nine. Abuckabett Hanover and Bythemissal have both surpassed $2 million in career earnings, as has 2022 Ewart winner Charlie May (post six).
Other horses in the field include Ervin Hanover, who had a three-race win streak snapped when he missed by a head in the Canadian Pacing Derby (Grade 1) on Aug. 30, multiple Kentucky Sire Stakes champion Women Layer and McKee Memorial division winner and millionaire Captain Luke.
$250,000 Jim Ewart Memorial Pace (Grade 2)
Post - Horse - Listed Driver - Trainer
1. Women Layer - Dexter Dunn - Virgil Morgan Jr.
2. Huntinthelastdolar - Andrew McCarthy - Per Engblom
3. Buzzsaw Russ - Mike Wilder - Melissa Essig
4. Ervin Hanover - Louis-Philippe Roy - David Menary
5. Little Rocket Man - Jeremy Smith - Ken Rucker
6. Charlie May - Brett Miller - Terry Di Cicco
7. Captain Luke - Dexter Dunn - Andrew Harris
8. Abuckabett Hanover - Dexter Dunn - Andrew Harris
9. Bythemissal - Chris Page - Ron Burke
[10. Captain Albano - Todd McCarthy - Noel Daley
The 10-horse field for the Charlie Hill Memorial Trot includes millionaire Hillexotic, who finished third in the Maple Leaf Trot (Grade 1) at Mohawk on Aug. 30.
Racing begins at 5:52 p.m. at Scioto Downs. For Saturday’s complete card, click here.
(USTA)