Hightstown, NJ – Fresh off being named Driver of the Year earlier this week by the U.S. Harness Writers Association, Jason Bartlett will aim to add two more big wins to his list of accomplishments when he gets behind Sir Pinocchio and Coaches Corner in their respective $250,000 MGM Grand Prix Series finals on Friday afternoon at MGM Yonkers Raceway.
Bartlett, who was named Driver of the Year for the first time in his career, leads all drivers in North America in purses, with $16.4 million, and is No. 2 in victories, with 798. He is only the second driver ever to win more than $15 million in purses and more than 700 races in the same season, joining Tim Tetrick (who has done it five times).
A 44-year-old native of Maine who now resides in upstate New York, Bartlett has already captured a dozen races this year with purses of $250,000 or more, including the first two Breeders Crowns of his career. In addition, he is winning races at a 31-percent clip and wrapping up his 14th dash title at Yonkers Raceway.
“When you win something like this, you kind of look back and remember where you came from – from where I started to being named Driver of the Year,” Bartlett said. “It’s kind of surreal; coming from Maine and moving down here and working my way up the ranks at Yonkers, and now nationally.
“Everybody has dreams, but I never imagined me winning that award. Nor have I been an awards type of guy, to be honest. I’ve always stayed close to home, comfortable. Yonkers had such a great schedule that I really didn’t need to go anywhere. I was making a great living and got to be home every night with my family. What more could you ask for? Now that my kids have gotten a little bit older, and I’m not coaching anymore, which really plays a big part in it, I followed the stakes horses a lot more than before. I hit the right horses, too. I got some nice horses in their divisions and followed them all around the New York Sire Stakes (and won four of eight NYSS finals). And a lot of the New York horses did really, really well on the national stage.”
Bartlett plans to take some time off following Friday’s card at Yonkers, where he will drive 8-5 morning-line favorite Sir Pinocchio in the MGM Grand Prix Trotting Series final one race before getting behind 3-1 morning-line choice Coaches Corner in the MGM Grand Prix Pacing Series final. Both events will be raced at the distance of 1-1/4 miles around Yonkers’ half-mile oval.
Sir Pinocchio, a 4-year-old gelding trained by Ed Hart, won each of his three MGM Grand Prix preliminaries. For the season, the son of Met’s Hall-Lady Cromwell has won eight of 19 starts and earned $247,605. He has won seven of his past nine races dating back to August.
“The 4-year-old year can be a tough year for these horses, going up to the major leagues,” Bartlett said about Sir Pinocchio, who last year won the MGM Yonkers Trot at Yonkers and has earned $936,934 in his career. “He’s gone with the best horses. In a lot of the big races, he’s been right there with them, but in the stretch I had to hold on to him and keep him together. That was something that never happened last year. So, we tinkered with him, and now the last month he’s been really good in the homestretch. Eddie has done a great job.
“He’s just been such a great horse. He’s so handy. For a trotter, it is amazing how fast he is out of the gate. That puts him in the right spots most of the time. He’s been really good throughout this series. I expect him to race really well on Friday. Win or lose, he’s finished off this year really well.”
Coaches Corner heads to his final after two wins and a second in his preliminaries. For the season, the 5-year-old son of Always A Virgin-Carobbean Pacetry has hit the board in 18 of 26 races, winning seven and earning $573,095. The Per Engblom trainee was second in the Breeders Crown Open Pace and third in the FanDuel Open Pace Championship.
Lifetime, Coaches Corner has 34 victories and $1.36 million in purses.
“He’s a model of consistency,” Bartlett said. “He might not be the most talented, he might not be the fastest, but you can always count on him to show up every single time. He kind of flies under the radar. You never see the headline where he wins the big one, but he’s always right there, always involved. We never thought he was this type of horse last year, and he just kept proving us wrong. I love the horse.”
Coaches Corner will start from post nine in the second tier on Friday in a field of 10.
“He didn’t draw good, which seems to be the theme for him this year. We have to hope we get ourselves in the best spot possible leaving the gate. I think the mile-and-a-quarter really suits his style. He’s a real strong horse, so I think the extra distance will help him.”
Racing begins at 2:15 p.m. (EST) Friday at MGM Yonkers Raceway, with the Grand Prix finals carded as races seven and eight.
For free Yonkers programs, visit the Standardbred Owners Association of New York website here.