from the PHHA/Mohegan Sun at Pocono Downs

Wilkes-Barre, PA — Harness racing’s “glamour division,” the 3-year-old pacing colts, will open the 2014 Mohegan Sun at Pocono Downs Pennsylvania Sire Stakes season this Saturday night (May 17), with four divisions of sophomores contesting the $266,252 event.

Captaintreacherous, 2013’s Pacer of the Year, opened his 3-year-old campaign in this same event 52 weeks ago with a victory, and many of this year’s stars in the sophomore colt pacing crop will be seeing early-season action this Saturday at the lightning-fast mountain oval.

The first division opens the evening’s 15-race card, with Sometimes Said accorded 5-2 early favoritism starting from post two for Hall of Fame driver John Campbell (who must think a lot of the colt trained by his brother Jim, since this is his only Pocono drive of the night; he’ll head right to The Meadowlands afterwards for other stakes competition). Sometimes Said was first or second in eight of 10 freshman starts, including seconds in his PA Sires championship and the Breeders Crown, and he started his 2014 campaign in very photogenic style with a 1:51/:53.2/:26.2 front-end triumph at Pocono last week.

Also highly-regarded in the first cut are Tellitlikeitis (3-1, post four, driver Brett Miller), debuting in 2014 for the all-conquering Jimmy Takter barn after a devastating 1:50.1 qualifier in which he paced his own last quarter in :25.2 and Limelight Beach (7-2, post six, David Miller), a double winner in Grand Circuit action at Lexington last year.

Race four will gather the PA colts for the second time, with the early 5-2 chalk being Maxi Bon (post four, driver Dave Palone). Maxi Bon is a late-developing colt, but he showed his promise by winning his seasonal debut in 1:49.4 despite being parked to the half. Cammikey (3-1, post one, Brain Zendt) seems the major danger here after opening his 2014 campaign with five victories, including a 1:51.1/:26.4 triumph at The Meadows last start.

Race six’s third cut finds the early pick to be Somestarsomewhere, at 5-2 from post six for the top team of trainer Ron Burke and driver Matt Kakaley. Somestarsomewhere set a world record of 1:49.4f for 2-year-old pacing colts in his Breeders Crown elim last year, then was third in the Crown championship. This will be his seasonal debut off of three qualifiers. Rated next at 3-1 is Somewhere In L A (post four, driver Mark MacDonald), fresh off a win in the Diplomat Series championship at Woodbine.

Race eight rounds out the Sire Stakes action, with McWicked the 5-2 choice off a 2014 debut at Pocono last Sunday, overcoming post nine and an overland trip to tally in 1:51. Simon Allard will have the sulky duty from post six. Allstar Partner is rated next at 3-1 for driver George Napolitano Jr., but last year’s PA Sire Stakes champ for this division will have to overcome the outside post eight.

Also on the Pocono card is a super $25,000 Preferred Handicap Pace, featuring the likes of Dancin Yankee, winner of the Van Rose Memorial here in 1:49 on a ‘good’ track on Kentucky Derby Day; Emeritus Maximus, gritty as he can be, taking last week’s feature here; and Clear Vision, winner of the Levy consolation.

Post time for the 15-race card at Pocono on Saturday is slotted for 6:30 p.m., though that may be delayed a few minutes dependent on a Thoroughbred race in Baltimore.