The Credit Winner gelding Bluffinner is currently in career best form after lowering his speed record to 1:53.2 while taking the $14,400 trotting feature at Harrah’s Philadelphia on Thursday afternoon (May 6).
Shinkansen, just favoured over Bluffinner in the wagering, kept his rival outside past a :27.4 quarter, but once trainer-driver Trond Smedshammer and Bluffinner got to the lead, the rest were racing for second money. Middle fractions of :57 and 1:25 preceded the final clocking, with Bluffinner drawing clear up the backstretch and going on to his third straight win for Purple Haze Stables LLC.
There were also a pair of $13,000 fast-class trots for the older set. In the first, favourite Patriarch Hanover set the piece, but the Theo Josseln mare Eva Dairpet FR, driven by Dexter Dunn, ground him down late to win in 1:53.4. The lightly-raced seven-year-old now has two wins and two second-place finishes since crossing the Atlantic from Ireland for owner Alan Wallace and trainer N
Southwind Gendry solidified his spot as one of the tops in his division Saturday (May 1) at The Meadows when he blazed a Pennsylvania Sires Stake (PASS) split in 1:49.4. Literl Lad Hanover captured the other division in the $153,856 event for three-year-old pacing colts and geldings, known as the Bye Bye Byrd, giving trainer Ron Burke a stake sweep.
Purchased as a yearling for a relatively modest $30,000, Southwind Gendry exceeded expectations by winning the PASS Championship, the Matron and divisions of the Bluegrass and International Stallion stakes in progress to banking $583,069 for owners Burke Racing Stable, Phillip Collura, Knox Services and J&T Silva-Purnel & Libby.
Favourites First In Graduate Opener | Standardbred Canada standardbredcanada.ca - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from standardbredcanada.ca Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Bella Bellini became the fastest three-year-old trotter in North America so far in 2021 with a 1:53.1 win on Thursday afternoon (April 29) at Harrah’s Philadelphia.
Dexter Dunn kept the Bar Hopping-Bella Dolce filly in the pocket behind Worthy Of Honor early through fractions of :28.1 and :57.4, then angled her out to challenge the leader nearing the 1:25.3 three-quarters. Bella Bellini cleared to the lead before reaching the homestretch and tacked on her own second successive :27.3 quarter to win comfortably by 5-3/4 lengths over the pacesetter for trainer Nifty Norman and owner David McDuffee.
Bella Bellini s 1:53.1 mile broke a seasonal standard for sophomores which had lasted all of 22 minutes, set in the previous race at Philly, when Mister Boinga caught pacesetting favourite Shinkansen to lower his record to 1:53.4. Tim Tetrick handled the Bar Hopping gelding, now 4-of-9 lifetime, for trainer Jill Roland and owner Bernard O’Brien in the richest race of the day, which went
The 2021 stakes season at The Meadows kicks off with a bang Saturday (May 1), when the track hosts a $153,856 Pennsylvania Sire Stakes for sophomore pacing colts and geldings featuring Southwind Gendry and Summa Cum Laude, a pair of the glamour division’s prospective superstars as well as day-long activities to help fans celebrate the simulcast of the Kentucky Derby following the live card.
In addition to the sire stakes, the card offers a $100,000 Pennsylvania Stallion Series event for three-year-old male pacers. The 13-race live program and the Derby Day festivities begin at the special post time of 11:25 a.m.
The PASS will see a pair of last year’s top freshmen, both from the Ron Burke stable, kick off their sophomore campaigns in the same division, which goes as race six. Southwind Gendry not only won the PASS championship, but he also scored in such other prestigious events as the Matron Stakes and splits of the Bluegrass and the International Stallion Series. The Alwa