Lexington, KY — Cannibal and Yannick Gingras turned the tables on It’s My Show with a 1:48.4 win in the $80,000 Kentucky Championship Series event for 3-year-old male pacers on Tuesday (Aug. 22) at the Red Mile. Mambacita made every pole a winning one in the Championship Series split for 3-year-old trotting fillies.
Gingras and Cannibal decided to take no prisoners and went straight to the lead. The duo clicked off fractions of :27.1, :56, and 1:23.2 with world champion It’s My Show (Scott Zeron) tracking in second. It’s My Show made is his bid in the lane with a :25.1 final panel, but the Adios winner paced his own final quarter mile in :25.2 to outlast his rival. A Cool Moment (Joey Putnam) was third.
Cannibal, a Diamond Creek Racing homebred who is the only horse to have defeated It’s My Show twice in 2023, improved his record to 9-7-1-0 on the season and has now earned $429,978 in two seasons of competition for trainer Nancy Takter. He paid $6.16 as the second choice.
Mambacita and Zeron followed Cannibal’s plan of attack in the filly trot, and the duo was on top right after the wings of the gate folded. The daughter of Tactical Landing established splits of :27.4, :56.1 and 1:24.2. Walner Payton (Dexter Dunn) gave chase all the way around the red clay oval, but Mambacita trotted a :26.2 final split to repel her foe by a half length in 1:51. Caviart Gwen (Andrew McCarthy) was third.
Tony Alagna trains Mambacita, who collected her second consecutive victory in the Bluegrass State, for owner-breeder Crawford Farms and partners Alagna Racing and Pryde Stables Inc. She now sports a resume of 11-5-2-0 in 2023, boosted her career bankroll to $697,518, and paid $6.16 to win as the public’s second choice.
Admiral Hill wins three straight in Commonwealth Series
Admiral Hill (Dunn) was victorious in the first division for 3-year-old male pacers. The Tom Hill homebred gelding took his third consecutive win over this surface in a lifetime best 1:53 for trainer Chris Ryder, and he paid $11.66 to win.
Combustion (Todd McCarthy) scored his second win of the year with a 1:49.4 triumph in the second division for male pacers. Brett Pelling trains the Brittany Farms-bred son of Captaintreacherous for Diamond Creek Racing, Thomas and Scott Dillion, and Cooper Silva Stables. Combustion paid $3.44 to win.
Believe U Me (Gingras) won the only $30,000 third-round leg of the Kentucky Commonwealth Series for 3-year-old filly trotters in lifetime best 1:53. Trained by Ron Burke, the daughter of Muscle Mass was bred by Wiseman Farms and is owned by William Donovan. Believe U Me paid $17.52 to win.
McCarthy wins two of four Goldenrod Series divisions
Cyberspace (Tim Tetrick) and Chulada (Andy McCarthy) won the two $15,000 Goldenrod Series divisions for sophomore trotting fillies. Kaptain Karlos (Andy McCarthy) took the first division of the Goldenrod Series for 3-year-old male pacers. Cant Stop Lou (Gingras) captured the second division.
Gingras led all drivers with three stakes victories on the 16-race card.
The Red Mile offers a rich buffet of wagering items, including a 20-cent Pick-6 with a 15-percent takeout, a 50-cent Pick-5 with an industry low 12-percent takeout, a Super Hi-5 with a 15-percent takeout, and Pick-4 events, with a $10,000 guaranteed pool in conjunction with the U.S. Trotting Association’s Strategic Wagering Program.
The Red Mile races on Sunday, Monday and Tuesday with a 1 p.m. EDT post time through Oct. 8. Free program pages are available at redmileracing.com, in addition to race replays and a daily livestream of each card.