from Hollywood Dayton Raceway
Dayton, OH — Hollywood Dayton Raceway will proudly present the fourth annual Dayton Trotting and Pacing Derbies on Friday night (Sept. 29). The 17 horses entered in the track’s signature events have combined earnings of $19,615,182 with 347 wins, including most of the major stakes throughout North America.
Hannelore Hanover has been tabbed as the 2-1 morning line favorite in the $167,000 Dayton Trotting Derby, despite drawing the seven-hole for driver Matt Kakaley and trainer Ron Burke. The 5-year-old mare (one of two in the field) has earned more than $2 million and recently beat her male counterparts in the Maple Leaf Trot in Toronto.
Homicide Hunter (Brett Miller) is the 3-1 second choice, despite being saddled with the outside eight post position, on the merits of a track record 1:51.2 score in the Centaur Trot at Hoosier Park in Indiana last Friday. JL Cruze (David Miller) will open as the third choice in the wagering (9-2 odds) from the coveted No. 1 post position.
Completing the talented trotting field will be Musical Rhythm (Jason Brewer), Warrawee Roo (Daniel Dube), Pasithea Face S (Tim Tetrick), Centurion ATM (Aaron Merriman) and Crazy Wow (Chris Page).
McWicked (David Miller) has been named the lukewarm favorite in the $140,000 Dayton Pacing Derby. The $2 million winner, conditioned by Casie Coleman, scored an impressive victory in Scioto Downs’ Jim Ewart Memorial earlier this month.
Rockin Ron (Matt Kakaley) will open at 3-1 as the fastest record horse in the field — a 1:47.2 triumph in an elimination of the Canadian Pacing Derby in late August. Check Six (Chris Page) and Missile J (Tim Tetrick) will also get support at the betting windows, opening at 4-1 and 9-2, respectively.
Other competitors in the pacing feature will be Luck Be Withyou (Brett Miller), Easy Lover Hanover (Doug McNair), Dealt A Winner (Aaron Merriman), Boston Red Rocks (Brett Miller also listed) and Mach It So (Ronnie Wrenn Jr.).
Final driver changes are due by noon on Tuesday (Sept. 26).
Post time for the 14-race program on Friday is 6:15 p.m. The Dayton Trotting Derby will be race 10 with an estimated 9:30 p.m. off time; while the Dayton Pacing Derby will be two races later at approximately 10:15 p.m.
- Red Mile opens up this weekend’s Grand Circuit action (Wednesday, September 27, 2017)
Grand Circuit action kicks off on Thursday (Sept. 28) at Red Mile with five divisions in the $366,000 Bluegrass for 2-year-old colt trotters.
- Easy Lover Hanover looks to step up in Dayton Pacing Derby (Thursday, September 28, 2017)
Easy Lover Hanover won six of his final seven races last year, including the Progress Pace to close his 3-year-old campaign, but trainer Ben Wallace was in no rush this season to push the gelding into action against the sport’s top older pacers. Easy Lover Hanover has won three of 15 races this year and earned $65,236 for owner Brad Grant. On Friday, he will compete in the $140,000 Dayton Pacing Derby at Ohio’s Hollywood Dayton Raceway, where McWicked is the 5-2 morning-line favorite, followed by Rockin Ron (3-1) and Check Six (4-1).