by Ken Weingartner, Harness Racing Communications

Freehold, NJ — The USTA website will provide periodic glimpses at some of harness racing’s stars as they prepare for action this year. Today, we look at ageless record-setting pacer Foiled Again.

FOILED AGAIN
Dragon Again – In A Safe Place – Artsplace

Owners: Burke Racing Stable, Weaver Bruscemi LLC, JJK Stables
Breeder: Barbara Matthews
Trainer: Ron Burke
Driver: Yannick Gingras

2014 Record: 26-6-8-5; $863,563; 1:50.2h
Career: 224-83-56-32; $6.90 million; 1:48f

Honors: Dan Patch Award for best older male pacer in 2013, 2012, 2011. Dan Patch Award for Pacer of the Year in 2011. O’Brien Award for best older male pacer in 2013, 2011.

Mike Lizzi photo

Foiled Again has banked $6.90 million in his brilliant career.

The road back: The 11-year-old Foiled Again qualified in 1:54.3 at the Meadowlands on March 7 and will return to the Big M on Friday for another qualifier as he prepares for the George Morton Levy Memorial Pacing Series at Yonkers Raceway. The Levy begins March 21. Foiled Again won the series in 2010 and 2009. He finished second in the final in 2013 and 2012 and was third in 2014 and 2011.

“It was good,” trainer Ron Burke said about Foiled Again’s first qualifier of the year. “He did everything we asked of him, so we were happy with him.

“We lost some time with the weather, but he’ll be fine. He couldn’t be any better. He’s training back as good or better than any other year. He’s an incredible horse. He just gets better and better all the time.”

Bittersweet: Last year, Foiled Again finished second to now-retired stablemate Sweet Lou in earnings among older pacers. Sweet Lou, who set a record with six consecutive wins in faster than 1:48, was named best older male pacer and Pacer of the Year. Sweet Lou won six of the races in which Foiled Again competed, with Foiled Again finishing second on three occasions.

Overall for the year, Foiled Again’s second-place finishes included the TVG Free For All Series Championship, Canadian Pacing Derby, Dayton Pacing Derby, American-National, Allerage, and Mohawk Gold Cup.

“Foiled’s schedule this year is basically the same as in the past,” Burke said. “I decided to have him be one of my top two horses for the big races. I don’t think anybody has his consistency. I’m going to have to stay the course and hope the races are a little weaker this year. Without (Sweet) Lou being in it should help him a little bit. Lou hurt him because he just couldn’t pace as fast as Lou. No matter what he did, he couldn’t get to him. If Foiled can get to a horse, he’ll usually beat him. But he just could never get to him.”

USTA/Ken Weingartner photo

Foiled Again has his eye on another big season.

Oh, that’s rich: No horse in harness racing history has banked more money than Foiled Again’s $6.90 million in lifetime North American purses. Foiled Again is the richest 7-year-old in history ($1.40 million in 2011), richest 8-year-old ($1.20 million in 2012), richest 9-year-old ($1.40 million in 2013) and richest 10-year-old ($863,563 in 2014). Combine the earnings of the next three richest 10-year-olds on the all-time list and they fall nearly $66,000 short of Foiled Again’s 2014 campaign.

One in a million: Foiled Again is the only horse in harness racing history to have three million-dollar seasons racing in North America.

“I don’t know if there will be another one that can do it for so many years at the top level,” driver Yannick Gingras said. “He’s one of a kind. I know at this point that he’s got less ahead of him than he has behind him, so I’m enjoying him a lot more. I know every race is a privilege. He’s a very special horse and I’m thankful I get to drive him.”

As easy as 1-2-3: For his career, Foiled Again has hit the board 57 times in races worth at least $100,000.

Size doesn’t matter: Foiled Again has won at least one race worth more than $450,000 on every sized racetrack in North America — half, five-eighths, seven-eighths and mile.

“I hate to say it, but it’s almost now where we take him for granted,” Burke said. “It’s just because he’s so consistent. You never have to worry about him. You never have to worry that he’s going to race bad this week. He’s not going to; he races good every week.”

USTA/Ken Weingartner photo

Foiled Again’s record-breaking career includes three million-dollar seasons.

Rambling on: The only older male pacers to receive three consecutive Dan Patch Awards are Foiled Again and Rambling Willie (1975-77). Interestingly, until Silent Swing’s $155,270 season in 2013, Rambling Willie was the sport’s richest 11-year-old pacer of all time, with $151,599 earned in 1981.

“I think the most remarkable thing about Foiled is that he’s an 11-year-old and we’re still talking about him,” Burke said. “You just don’t see horses that are even ages 8 or 9 that are a major factor in their class. He’s 11 years old and nobody can say they’re definitely going to beat him this year. He’s got as good a chance as anybody at the end of the year to be talked about for aged pacer of the year.”

Crowning moment: Foiled Again won the 2013 Breeders Crown at Mohegan Sun at Pocono Downs by a nose over Pet Rock in the slop to become at age 9 the oldest Breeders Crown champion in history.

“I really believe that race sums his career up,” said Gingras, who pumped his fist three times in celebration that night when the photo-finish result was posted on the tote board. “Doing it the way he did, roughing it up; he never had a breather at any point during the race. He was able to beat the best there was and no one had any excuse. He just refused to lose.”