Lexington, KY — Kissme Ifyoucan pounced from a pocket ride and held back game tempo-setter Heart Of Secret to take the $80,000 Kentucky Championship Series opening preliminary for 2-year-old trotting fillies in a 1:51.4 mile on Sunday (Aug. 9) during a make-up non-wagering card at The Red Mile.
Heart Of Secret (driven by Yannick Gingras) swiftly left the gate for the lead while Kissme Ifyoucan (Austin Hanners) glided out of post 2 to procure the pocket approaching a :27.3 first quarter. Hanners stayed steady behind Heart Of Secret as shecut a :55 half and 1:23.3 three-quarters under minimal pressure, but then fired his charge after the leader rounding for home. Kissme Ifyoucan ground by Heart Of Secret in the stretch and kept her at bay through the stretch sprint to win by a half length with Sweetest Of All (Atlee Bender) closing for third and Fascination (Todd McCarthy) giving chase in fourth.
Todd Luther trains Kissme Ifyoucan, a filly by In Range-I Gotta Feelin purchased from the 2025 Lexington Selected Sale for $160,000 by owner Greg Luther Racing LLC. The filly, with a single blemish on her record in five starts from a runner-up finish in the $150,000 Next Generation at Scioto Downs, has now banked $147,500 in her career.
Diana Hanover (Tim Tetrick, 1:54.4 winning mile) brushed out of fourth for the lead in the backstretch and comfortably took the lone $30,00 division of the Kentucky Commonwealth Series by 3-1/4 lengths over Turtle Dove (Mattias Melander) and These Days (Todd McCarthy) in the middle of the make-up card. Richard “Nifty” Norman trains the Chapter Seven-Dabra Day filly for owners Melvin Hartman and Little E LLC.
The make-up card also included a $15,000 Kentucky Golden Rod division won by Hanna Hill (Andy McCarthy, 1:54.3), who lifted from a shuffle towards the top to win by three lengths. Petter Engblom trains the daughter of Gimpanzee out of multiple-stakes winner Caprice Hill.
Live harness racing continues at The Red Mile with a 17-race card starting at 5:05 p.m. The betting card is headlined by three $80,000 divisions of the Kentucky Championship Series opening preliminary with two splits for 3-year-old trotting fillies and a single dash for the pacing glamour boys.
For more information on the 2026 live harness racing season, visit The Red Mile website (https://www.redmileracing.com)