Lexington, KY – Go Dog Go ground uncovered on the rim and muscled through the stretch to clock a 1:49.3 win in the first of three divisions for the $261,000 Greenshoe Bluegrass 3-Year-Old Colt & Gelding Trot, sponsored by the Greenshoe Syndicate and Hanover Shoe Farms, on Saturday (Sept. 27) at The Red Mile.
Leaving from post 7, driver Todd McCarthy coasted forward with Go Dog Go and found a seat in fourth while Fashion Green (driven by Tim Tetrick) battled Happy Jack B (Ake Svanstedt) for the lead through a :27 first quarter. Fashion Green took control and carried the field to the half in :54.1, where Go Dog Go flushed outside and began marching towards the leader. Go Dog Go loomed alongside Fashion Green after three-quarters in 1:22.2 and hit another gear in mid-stretch to edge away for a 1-3/4-length win. Happy Jack B gave chase in third and Blank (Andy McCarthy) finished fourth.
“He’s one of the fastest horses I’ve ever been around,” trainer Carter Pinske said. “Just mentally he’s a bit tough. I don’t know if this track totally agrees with him – we did a lot of tweaking this week, and finally he put it all together.”
A Greenshoe-Primary Target colt, Go Dog Go won his fifth race from nine starts this season and his seventh race from 19 starts in his career, earning $533,718 for owners Wiesman Farms LLC and Al Libfeld. The colt, sent the 4-5 favorite, paid $4.80 to win.
Warrior (Todd McCarthy) usurped 1-9 favorite Super Chapter (Dexter Dunn) at odds of 31-1 when lifting with the most momentum over the top to post a 1:50.3 win in the second division of the Greenshoe Bluegrass.
Todd McCarthy raced second to last as Don’t Ask For More (Ake Svanstedt) skirmished for the lead with Big Shoes (Yannick Gingras) through a :27.2 first quarter and :55.1 half. Don’t Ask For Me retook command from Big Shoes before the half and handled pressure through the turn from first-over Variegated (Tim Tetrick) while McCarthy worked Warrior into a position third over, tracking Super Chapter.
McCarthy fanned towards the center of the track after three-quarters in 1:23.2 and advanced alongside Super Chapter to overhaul the weary in deep stretch. Warrior then overpowered the Hambletonian runner-up for a narrow win by a half length with Onajetplane (Andy McCarthy) rallying for third and Hey Porter (Scott Zeron) taking fourth.
“I talked with Ake briefly before I went out there just to get a few key notes on the horse. He told me he was pretty straightforward and a lovely horse to drive, and he was spot on. I knew I was following a couple of good ones there. I put Super Chapter in there early and was able to get him going before the half. He caught some live cover too, but it all kind of worked out. It was a good flow and it was a good slingshot move at the top of the stretch.”
Ake Svanstedt trains Warrior, a Walner-Like A Lindy gelding, for owner Brochart Stable Inc. The colt won his third race from 13 starts and has now earned $78,202. He paid $65.40 to win.
Meshuggah (Scott Zeron) popped off a pocket trip in the final Greenshoe Bluegrass division to collect a 1:50.1 victory.
Zeron nestled Meshuggah behind 1-2 favorite Mr Mouton (Ake Svanstedt) heading to a :27.3 first quarter and followed comfortably as Svanstedt let his charge roll to a :54.3 half. Onemore Volo (Todd McCarthy) pulled out of third to roll uncovered into the last turn and inched forward to match strides with Mr Mouton crossing three-quarters in 1:23. Mr Mouton rebuffed that challenger turning for home but clung to a diminishing lead as Greenma (Trond Smedshammer) surged off cover and Meshuggah shook free from the pocket. Meshuggah downed Mr Mouton and outsprinted Greenma to claim victory by 1-1/4 lengths. Greenma took second from Mr Mouton and The Rogue Prince (Tim Tetrick) rallied from the back for fourth.
“I think the horse is not maybe number one, two [or] three in this crop, but I think he’s on his way up,” said Anders Strom, who owns Meshuggah through Courant Inc. “I think he’s going to be developing and we could see today that he could win quite easily.”
Marcus Melander trains Meshuggah, a Greenshoe-Starita colt who won his second race from 11 starts this season and his fourth race from 21 starts in his career. The colt has amassed $551,047 and paid $9.98 to win.