by Don Bielak, publicity director, Freehold Raceway
Freehold, NJ —
Both Mark’s Secret Love and Brandon’s Cowboy are owned by Martin Scharf and trained by Mark Ford. Brandon’s Cowboy finished ninth in the Cane elimination and was also eligible number one, that is, the horse who would be first in line to get into the race were anyone to drop out of the Cane final. By removing Mark’s Secret Love from the final, it was assured that Brandon’s Cowboy would move into the race.
Ford was candid about the move. “It was just a matter of which horse we thought had the better chance,” Ford said. “After conferring with the owner (Scharf), we decided that Brandon’s Cowboy might be a better choice.”
A comparison of the Mark’s Secret Love and Brandon’s Cowboy seems to support the maneuver.
Brandon’s Cowboy has won half of his 16 starts this season and has banked $256,951 in purses. His best winning time was a 1:503 mile at Pocono Downs on July 31.
Mark’s Secret Love has tallied in only three of 13 outings this year with earnings of $45,467. His top winning time came at the Meadowlands on July 16 when he scored in 1:514.
Ford talked about the reasons behind the decision. “He (Brandon’s Cowboy) had no chance in the Cane elimination; he drew post seven in a ten horse field. Actually, he’s had terrible luck lately. He won the Berry’s Creek earlier this year, then after that, it all seemed to go downhill from there. He was able to win an elimination for the Confederation Cup, but got the trailer position behind a 100-1 shot in the final, ran up his back and made a break.”
Brandon’s Cowboy wound up finishing eighth in the Confederation Cup final, a race worth $436,590.
The draw for the $334,875 Cane Pace final will be held on the morning of September 2 at Freehold and the final will be contested on Labor Day.