By:Don Bielak, Freehold Raceway Publicity Director
FREEHOLD, NJ – – Kathleen LaMontagne’s Motivational made every pole a winning one as she captured the $75,000 final of the New Jersey Sire Stakes for two-year-old NJ-sired trotting fillies at Freehold Raceway on Wednesday.
Motivational, a daughter of Muscles Yankee, was driven by George Brennan and set fractions of 29.3, 1:00.1, 1:30.3 on the way to a two and three-quarters lengths victory in a final time of 2:00.1. Possessed Bydreams (Stephane Bouchard) got a rail trip behind Motivational and finished second. Fancy Candy earned the show spot, ten lengths behind the winner.
The NJSS final victory was the sixth win in nine career outings for Motivational and gave the LaMontagne trainee a sweep of the four-race series.
Several $10,000 New Jersey Sire Stakes Green Acres races were contested on the Freehold card, also, and records were set in two divisions.
In the GA race for three-year-old NJ-sired trotting colts, James Petrucelli’s Bar Exam prevailed by one and three-quarter lengths in a record time of 1:57 behind the handling of Cat Manzi.
The Green Acres race for NJ-sired juvenile trotting fillies was taken by Paul Kinnear, Douglas Hutchins and Joseph King’s Ticket To Glide with Manzi in the bike. The Yankee Glide filly finished five lengths in front of her nearest rival in a record mile of 1:59.
Other winners in the Green Acres were: P. Kleinhans Racing’s Lavec Dream, an Enjoy Lavec filly who won the first division for three-year-old NJ-sired trotting fillies in 2:00.3 with Jay Randall in the sulky and owner/trainer/driver Daniel Martin’s Joyardee, a daughter of Enjoy Lavec who captured the second division in 1:58.4.