by Karsten Bonsdorf, USTA web newsroom correspondent

The French trotter Ready Cash seems to be in a class of his own and on Sunday afternoon (Jan. 1) he won the third prep race for the Prix d’Amerique very easily.

Gerard Forni photo

Ready Cash trotted to a new race record in the Prix de Bourgogne.

Ready Cash, with Franck Nivard in the bike, went off as the 1-5 shot in the Prix de Bourgogne, raced over the 1-5/16th mile distance at Vincennes and with a total purse of $155,000.

Ready Cash was soon prominent and at the five-eighths-mile pole Nivard sent his handsome trotter to the front. Italian bred Main Wise As (sired by Yankee Glide), driven by Pierre Levesque, tried to follow the heavy favorite, but was never able to get to him and had to settle for second place.

In a hand drive from Franck Nivard, Ready Cash won in a new race record of 1:53.3 (mile rate), followed two lengths behind by Main Wise As, while a fast finishing Private Love took third.

By winning the Prix de Bourgogne, Ready Cash became just the sixth trotter to win the first three prep races for the Prix d’Amerique. The fourth and last prep race, the Prix de Belgique, is next for Ready Cash on January 15.

On the undercard, the 5-year-old Italian mare Nalda Nof (sired by Supergill) also had the services of Franck Nivard and she won in a very impressive style in 1:54.4 (mile rate) over the 1-5/16th mile distance.