Yesturday kicked off the opening legs of the Classic Series for the older stars in the sport at Dover Downs in Delaware. The finals will be held later this year at The Meadowlands.
Classic Series Oaks (older female trotters)
Tim Tetrick steered Buck I St Pat to an easy 1:53 track record score, just one-fifth off the world record over a five-eighths-mile oval to win the $85,000 Classic Oaks. The 5-year-old went right to the front and never was headed in scoring her fourth victory of the year for owners Howard Taylor, Ed Gold, Abe Basen and Ron Fuller.
While setting the winning fractions, Tetrick and the daughter of Jailhouse Jesse kept runner-up Snazzy Millie and John Campbell a length back, challenging on the outside from the mid-backstretch to the finish line. Speed N The Tunnel with Tony Morgan got up to finish third.
Classic Series Open Pace (older male pacers)
In the $85,000 Pacing Classic, Artistic Fella followed the cover of Manhardt and George Brennan, testing front-pacing Total Truth and Brian Sears from the clubhouse turn until turning for home before Tim Tetrick unleashed the Pacific Fella 5-year-old down the lane on the way to a 1:50.3 victory.
It was the 2007 Breeders Crown winner's first start off a 1:55 qualifying race at Spring Garden Ranch in South Florida. Counting back to last Fall, the Steve Elliott-trained Artistic Fella has now won his last four races in a row for owner Joe Alborano. Veteran Casimir Camotion rolled down the lane to finish second for Ron Pierce while Mr Feelgood and Andy Miller were the show finishers.
Classic Series Distaff (older female pacers)
My Little Dragon enjoyed a perfect two-hole trip, racing behind odds-on favorite Southwind Tempo in the $85,000 Classic Distaff Pace before exploding to victory.
John Campbell got Southwind Tempo away smartly and controlled the early fractions. At the top of the stretch, Brian Sears took My Little Dragon to the outside and dashed past the leader in a 1:51.3 performance. Southwind Tempo held on for second with her entrymate Benear and Cat Manzi closing for third. Adam Victor & Son own My Little Dragon, a winner of nearly $1.6 million in purses.
Classic Series Open Trot (older male trotters)
The biggest surprise on the super-fast program came in the $85,000 Trotting Classic where 6-1 Enough Talk, a recent purchase by P Kleinhans Racing Inc., could not be caught in a 1:52.2 effort. That clocking lowered the world record for an older trotting gelding on a five-eighths-mile track, breaking the old standard of 1:53.1 held by Woody Woodrow. American Lane with Cat Manzi was the second-place finisher in front of Green Day and Tim Tetrick.
Race favorite Vivid Photo got away near the back in the 10-horse field. Roger Hammer took the former Hambletonian and Trotting Classic champion to the outside, then weakened on the backstretch and finished off the board for one of the rare times in his career.
The Classic Series's next stop is Mohawk Racetrack in Campbellvile, Ontario on Saturday, May 31, 2008.