Anderson, IN — The Hoosier homecoming was a victorious one for Sabonis as the Indiana-bred returned to Harrah’s Hoosier Park for the first time in 2025 to post a 1:49.2 win in the Grade 2 $300,000 Dan Patch Stakes, presented by Indiana Standardbred Breed Development, on Friday (Aug. 8).
Starting in the second-tier post 10 with driver Dexter Dunn as the 3-1 second choice, Sabonis followed 2-1 favorite Little Rocket Man (Mike Oosting) out of the gate to get away in the fifth position in the field of 11 as Desperate Man (Matt Kakaley) cut the quarter in a hot :26.1. Little Rocket Man wheeled to the top from the pocket on the backstretch before leading to the halfway point in :54.1, when Dunn tipped Sabonis first-over and into fourth. Sabonis charged into second around the final turn and to Oosting’s wheel as he began to call on Little Rocket Man for more at three-quarters in 1:22.1.
Sabonis surged alongside Little Rocket Man before putting the favorite away halfway through the lane — but with a new threat in Desperate Man, who swung off the pylons to take aim at the leader while Bythemissal (Chris Page) picked up steam widest of all. Digging in with a :27 final quarter, Sabonis reached the wire first by 1-1/4 lengths over Bythemissal, who edged out Desperate Man for the place spot. Captain Luke (Todd McCarthy) emerged from a wall of horses to be fourth over Huntinthelastdolar (Andy McCarthy).
“We were in a tricky spot to start but fired through nicely to get away in a good spot,” said Dunn, who notched his second career Dan Patch victory. “He was travelling so strong around the final turn; he gave a really gritty effort to dig deep in a great mile.”
Trained by Brett Pelling, Sabonis has won two of eight races on the year with five third-place efforts for earnings of $306,116 on the season. Owned by Diamond Creek Racing and Pelling Racing, the 4-year-old son of Tellitlikeitis-Gypsy Bellevue as won 19 of 28 lifetime for career earnings of $806,316.
Sabonis paid $8.40 for the victory.
The Dan Patch victory was one of four on the night for Dunn, who ended the 15-race card with a natural hat trick to match Hoosier’s leading driver Trace Tetrick for top honors. Tyler George led the way on the training side of things, also with four victories on the night.
Live racing at Harrah’s Hoosier Park continues on Saturday (Aug. 9) with a 12-race card set to get underway with a first post of 5:30 p.m. The night will get underway with a $4,240 carryover in the Early Pick-5 (races 1-5). Free online racing programs are available on the Harrah’s Hoosier Park website in addition to free access to race replays.
For more information on the 2025 live racing season at Harrah’s Hoosier Park, visit www.harrahshoosierpark.com.