by Paul Ramlow, publicity director, The Grand Circuit

This Week: Monument Circle, Carl Erskine Trot, Hoosier Park Pacing Derby, the Crossroads of America, and the USS Indianapolis, Hoosier Park, Anderson, Ind.; and Kindergarten finals, Vernon Downs, Vernon, N.Y.

Schedule of events: Grand Circuit action this week will get underway on Friday (Oct. 30) at Hoosier Park with five stakes races on the card. Leading the way is the $285,500 Monument Circle for 3-year-old colt pacers. Also on tap will be the $265,000 Carl Erskine Trot for 3-year-old male trotters, the $165,000 Hoosier Park Pacing Derby for older pacers, the $140,000 Crossroads of America for 3-year-old filly trotters and the $100,000 USS Indianapolis for 3-year-old filly pacers.

The Saturday (Oct. 31) card at Vernon Downs features the $191,500 Kindergarten Series final for 2-year-old trotting colts and the $174,500 Kindergarten Series final for 2-year-old trotting fillies.

Complete entries for the races are available at this link.

Last time: This past Saturday night (Oct. 24) at Woodbine saw 12 Breeders Crown races contested and trainer Jimmy Takter and driver David Miller dominated the proceedings.

USTA/Mark Hall photo

Always B Miki capped off a big night for driver David Miller and trainer Jimmy Takter with a win in the Breeders Crown Open Pace.

The finale of the night was the $400,000 Open Pace, in which Always B Miki posted a sensational 1:49.3 mile over a rain-soaked surface at Woodbine. The victory, a year removed from when the son of Always A Virgin had to be scratched from the Crown 3-year-old pacing colt final at The Meadowlands, came at the expense of stablemate JK Endofanera and Mach It So. Owned by Bluewood Stable, Roll The Dice Stable and Christina Takter, the victory was the sixth of the 12 Breeders Crown races for trainer Jimmy Takter and the fifth by winning driver David Miller.

Freaky Feet Pete, a $62,500 supplemental entry, rallied from well back as the favorite to capture the $531,250 Breeders Crown 3-year-old male pacing event at Woodbine. The son of Rockin Image looked to be far out of contention on the final turn, but driver Trace Tetrick gave him his marching orders in the stretch and the colt sprinted to a 1:50 victory at the expense of Artspeak and Lost For Words. In the stretch, Lost For Words opened up a few lengths, but Freaky Feet Pete had already been sent wide and he was closing with wild abandon. Trained by Larry Rheinheimer for owners Mary Jo Rheinheimer and Marty Rheinheimer, Freaky Feet Pete kicked home the winner, with Artspeak coming solidly late for second and Lost For Words finishing third.

The four Breeders Crown races for 2-year-olds followed form for the most part, with Southwind Frank wrapping up his divisional title in the freshman colt trot race. The son of Muscle Hill-Flawless Lindy has been a dominant force in the division all season long and the Crown performance with Yannick Gingras in the bike was no exception as he cruised over the rain-soaked Woodbine oval in a 1:54.2 clocking under wraps. Owned by Burke Racing Stable, Weaver Bruscemi, Our Horse Cents Stables and J&T Silva Stables, the victory was win number 11 in a dozen starts for the impressive colt trained by leading conditioner Ron Burke, who celebrated his ninth Breeders Crown victory.

Pure Country maintained her undefeated streak in the $600,000 Breeders Crown 2-year-old filly pace, winning in 1:51.4 as the 1-9 favorite. With Brett Miller in the sulky, Pure Country defeated Shezarealdeal and Mayhem Seelster in 1:51.4 for her tenth straight victory. A homebred filly from Diamond Creek Farm by Somebeachsomewhere out of the Western Hanover mare Western Montana, Pure Country collected her 10th win of the season and pushed her seasonal earnings to nearly $700,000 for trainer Jimmy Takter.

Complete recaps of all the races are available at the Grand Circuit website.

Grand Circuit Standings: In 2015, the Grand Circuit leaders in three categories (driver, trainer and owner) will once again be tracked on a points system (20-10-5 for the top three finishers in divisions/finals and 10-5-2 for the top three finishers in eliminations/legs). Winbak Farm is the sponsor for the 2015 Grand Circuit awards.

Here are the leaders following the past week’s action:

Drivers: 1. Yannick Gingras – 1,345; 2. David Miller – 1,050.5; 3. Tim Tetrick – 901; 4. Brett Miller – 616; 5. Scott Zeron – 549.5.

Trainers: 1. Ron Burke – 1,632; 2. Jimmy Takter – 1,412; 3. Tony Alagna – 572.5; 4. Jeff Bamond Jr. – 340; 5. Ake Svanstedt – 321.

Owners: 1. Burke Racing – 376.55; 2. Weaver Bruscemi – 322.1; 3. Bamond Racing – 275; 4. Christina Takter – 219.45; 5. Marvin Katz – 193.4.

Looking ahead: Grand Circuit action will take place next week at Dover Downs and Balmoral Park. Dover will host the four Matron Stakes for 2-year-old colt and filly pacers and trotters on Thursday (Nov. 5), while Balmoral will feature eight American-National stakes on Saturday (Nov. 7).