Trainer and co-owner Chris Ryder will be bringing a lot of ‘muscle’ to the $66,500 Harold Dancer Trot on Friday, September 27 at Freehold Raceway.
Ryder will send out both Muscle On In and Well Built in the stakes for two-year-old New Jersey-sired trotters. Both colts are by first-year sire Muscle Hill.
The entry has been rated at odds of 5-2 on the morning line for Race 7.
A break at the start cost Muscle On In any hope in his last start, the $25,000 New Jersey Sire Stakes – Green Acres Final on September 20. The victory in that race went to Choco Sun who nosed out Chocolate Day. Those two trotters are also in the Harold Dancer. Chocolate Day is the 7-2 second choice on the morning line from Post 6 and Choco Sun is listed at 9-2 from Post 8.
While Daniel Dube gets the call on Muscle On In from the rail, Ryder will take the lines on Well Built from Post 7.
Muscle On In comes into the Harold Dancer with two wins in eight starts for earnings of $19,415. He took his mark of 1:58.3 in a $20,000 Arden division at the Meadows.
A $15,000 Harrisburg Sale purchase, he races for the partnership of Ryder, Robert Mondillo of Delaware, OH and Max Wernick of New City, NY.
Entrymate Well Built, owned by Ryder and Mondillo, has two seconds in six starts, banking $11,375. He was a $30,000 Lexington Selected Sale acquisition.
The stakes record for the Harold Dancer, which is sponsored by the Standardbred Breeders & Owners Association of New Jersey, is 1:59, established in 2010 by Chapter Seven.
The field for the $66,500 Harold Dancer Trot:
HD # – POST – HORSE – DRIVER – Morning Line
1 – 1 – Muscle On It – Daniel Dube – 5-2
1A – 7 – Well Built – Chris Ryder – 5-2
2 – 2 – Celebrity Spitfire – Eric Abbatiello – 6-1
3 – 3 – Resolve – Jim Pantaleano – 8-1
4 – 4 – Hot Type – DR Ackerman – 5-1
5 – 5 – Skates N Plates – Jim Marshall III – 10-1
6 – 6 – Chocolate Day – Marcus Johansson – 7-2
7 – 8 – Choco Sun – Jim Meittinis – 9-2
In other stakes action on Friday, two $7,000 divisions of the New Jersey Sire Stakes – Green Acres will be contested prior to the betting card.
In the first event, the third leg for two-year-old trotting fillies, drew a field of five, including first-leg winner Shelikescandy (by Chocolatier) and second-leg winner Worldrecordsweeper (Muscles Yankee).
The second non-wagering stakes is the first leg for three-year-old trotting colts and geldings with five entrants, including $38,500 Charles Smith runner up Dagget (Chocolatier).
The $25,000 Green Acres Final for three-year-old pacing fillies is the featured seventh race on Thursday, September 26.
The 6-5 morning-line favourite is the Ross Croghan trainee Certified Ideal (Western Ideal) who will be driven by Jim Pantaleano from Post 2.
Four of the finalists are by Western Ideal, two by Cams Card Shark and one by Rocknroll Hanover.
Prior to the Thursday card, five three-year-old trotting fillies will face off in the second round of the Green Acres.
(SBOANJ)