There will be $227,766 in purses distributed among nine events during the second leg of the Massachusetts Sire Stakes (MASS) at Plainridge Park this afternoon (Monday, Oct. 2).
Five non-wagering races will kick off at 1 p.m. and then four more of the MASS dashes will be contested during the pari-mutuel program, which will get underway at 2:30 p.m. All two and three-year-old divisions of both gaits and genders will compete with some very interesting contests on the slate.
George Ducharme’s Muscles Jared (Muscle Massive-Tetiana) simply crushed the competition last week in the three-year-old colt and gelding trot, as he won by eight lengths after having led gate to wire by open lengths in 1:55.3. The effort was expected, as Muscles Jared had been racing successfully on the Pennsylvania Sire Stake circuit where he finished second in the $252,000 final just three weeks ago.
Trainer Julie Miller’s Big Man Ev (Chapter Seven-Possessed By Lindy) has entered this week, and will head into the tilt red-hot off the New York Sire Stakes circuit where he is the top point-getter in the Excelsior ‘A’ series. He is on a four-race winning streak which includes starts at Tioga Downs, Saratoga Raceway, Batavia Downs and Yonkers Raceway.
Both horses love the front end and the dash could shape up to be a two-horse breakaway in the short field of six.
Muscles Jared has drawn Post 2 and will have Chris Lems aboard once again. Big Man Ev has drawn Post 3 and will seat Steve Smith for his regular reinsman, Andy Miller, who has not made the trip.
The race has been carded as the third non-betting event before the regular pari-mutuel program with an estimated post time of 1:20 p.m.
Also, in the first race on the preliminary card (post time 1 p.m.) is the second round of two-year-old pacing fillies that produced a track record last week.
Delco Dusty (Jeremes Jet-Gypsys Good Girl) tripped-out and went on to record her first lifetime win in 1:53. The time annihilated the old track mark by two full seconds. The trip came courtesy of Rock Me Threetimes (Rock N Roll Heaven-Love Rocks), who carried the mail on the front-end for most of the mile and set the fractions in :26.4, :55.3 and 1:24.2 along the way.
This week Delco Dusty drew Post 1 and trainer Heidi Rohr will have Greg Merton up once again. Rock Me Threetimes drew Post 2, and his conditioner, Kevin Switzer, has stuck with Shawn Gray, who also drove her last week.
A similar strategy scenario played out in the two-year-old colt and gelding pace last week, and those competitors will tangle again in Race 5 (post time 3:50 p.m.) of the regular betting card.
Twelve (Shady Character-Sabine Hanover) got a perfect pocket trip behind Latent Print (Camluck-Affluence) before pulling in the lane and winning by a length in 1:56.1. Experience may have played a role in that win, as Twelve has twice as many starts as Latent Print and has also been competing in the Maine Sire Stakes since June. But Latent Print was game in defeat and should only benefit from the outing, making this week’s rematch that much more interesting.
Trainer/driver Eddie Davis Jr. will start Twelve from Post 4 at 4-5, while trainer/driver Scott Renz will get Latent Print underway from Post 5 at 7-2.
(With files from the Standardbred Owners of Massachusetts)