Halmstad, Sweden — Nightlife In, driven by Carl Johan Jepson and trained by David Persson, won both his elimination heat and the final of the Sprintermästaren — the race popularly known as “Sweden’s Hambletonian” — on Thursday (July 2) at Halmstad.
In the elimination, Nightlife In had to battle Wise Guy and Örjan Kihlström, but in the final, he was in a class of his own, winning by 5 lengths and covering the one-mile trip in 1:54.1.
There was, however, a very tight battle for the minor placings, with four horses crossing the wire almost simultaneously. Variegated, who began his career with Marcus Melander, was the best of them and took second place.
Nightlife In is owned and bred by Invexbo, which also bred his sire, Day and Night In, by Muscle Hill.
Nightlife In’s dam, Caddie Lavec, is a sister to Caddie Dream, the dam of the well-known Readly Express, now a successful breeding stallion.
Yes, Nightlife In’s pedigree is certainly in order. He earned $180,000 in winning this Group 1 race. It was his second Group 1 victory, having also won the E3 final last year.
The fillies’ division, the Stosprintern, proved an easy assignment for Italian-born but Dutch-trained Gourmet d’Arc, sired by Six Pack, with Robin Bakker, who won convincingly in 1:53.2.
The pair sat on the outside of Mimosa to Martini, by Gimpanzee, and Mats E. Djuse during the race, before drawing away easily in the stretch.
The first prize for Gourmet d’Arc, trained by Paul Hagoort, was $100,000.