by Michael Sweeney, for Scarborough Downs

Scarborough, ME — With the eyes of the world focused on Belmont Park on Saturday (June 6), the faithful in southern Maine will be gathered at Scarborough Downs to witness via simulcast American Pharoah’s bid to become the first Triple Crown champion since Affirmed in 1978.

In anticipation of the historic bid, first post for an extremely strong live harness racing card has been moved up to 2 p.m. (EDT), with 12 races scheduled, leading right up to the Belmont Stakes at 6:30.

Scarborough’s live card is anchored by three $10,000 Invitational events as the best horses in Maine will be showcased at the Downs in front of what is expected to be one of the largest crowds of the season.

Only The Lonely and Eddie Davis Jr. will take their second stab at establishing a new divisional track record in the $10,000 renewal of the Dirigo Pace, a feat that they missed by a mere fifth of a second just two weeks ago. Standing in his way include a couple of razor sharp newcomers to Maine’s invitational scene, Hall Bro and A Sweet Ride, trucking in from the mid-Atlantic and mid-Western circuits, respectively.

The $10,000 Shady Sabrina Pace will showcase the distaff set. Legerdepan and Kevin Switzer Jr. will look to extend their winning ways to four consecutive scores. Taylor Rei figures to be extremely tough as she makes her second start after taking a three-month break from tough Delmarva circuit battles while Ashlee’s Cool Gal, defending distaff Pacer of the Year, has been no further than a half-length back in any of her last three appearances.

The $10,000 Triple Crown Trot will feature a classic match-up between the millionaire trotter Pembroke Prayer, who rides a convincing three-race win streak into Saturday’s action, and three-time Trotter of the Year Victory Tax, who draws to the far inside of his chief rival for driver Drew Campbell.

“By putting on such a strong card in front of what we expect to be an overflow crowd, we are hoping to entice many of the fans to keep coming back to the races throughout the summer months,” said Downs’ Race Secretary David Sawyer. “This is a prime opportunity for us to market ourselves to an audience who may not be intimately conscious of harness racing as an entertainment option and we were not going to miss the chance.”

Live harness racing is proudly featured at the Downs on our regular weekly schedule of Thursday through Saturday with a post time of 4:30 p.m. (EDT). The popular Sunday matinees get underway at 1:30 p.m.

For more information, visit www.ScarboroughDowns.com or our Facebook page.