Chester, PA — After racing stakes horses for the most part for the last two months, Tim Tetrick participated in the Thursday afternoon (Oct. 15) card at Harrah’s Philadelphia – and promptly won six races. The sextet enabled him to open a bit more of a lead at the top of the local sulky standings as he pursues his sixth straight Philly crown.
Tetrick was successful behind the Sebastian K S gelding Benjamin Hanover in the featured $16,000 fast-class trot, clocking the mile in 1:51.2 in the 1-3/4 length triumph. Atypically off the board in his last five starts (some against the very top horses), Benjamin Hanover was spotted third by Tetrick, waited as favored Abruzzo put up splits of :27 and :55.2, then came outside uncovered going towards the 1:23.1 three-quarters. The winner put in a :27.3 final quarter to go right on by Abruzzo and defeat Little Expensive, who was on his bumper most of the way.
Benjamin Hanover ran his career numbers to 79-37-9-5 and $402,473 for trainer Scott DiDomenico and owner Angela Cornell.
A $13,500 conditioned trot saw the Tactical Landing mare Luna Landing won for the fifth time in succession, powering up first-over then holding off heavy chalk Trillion Times by 1-1/4 lengths in a lifetime best 1:53.2. The streaking distaff was driven by trainer Francisco Del Cid for Dumain Haven Farm LLC.
There were three cuts of the $12,000 class for developing trotters, with the fastest winner, Bricco, taking his second straight in 1:55.1 on the engine for driver Mark Herschberger, trainer Andrew Harris, and Punisher 11 Stable LLC. Bricco’s first 21 career starts offered one win and some promise, but the Gimpanzee-Sigilwig sophomore gelding (a half brother to millionaire Sig Sauer) seems to be putting it all together now and should be a horse to watch in the near future.
New marks were posted in the other two divisions: a 1:55.2 score by the Captain Corey sophomore miss Lady Tessie Marie for Tetrick, DiDomenico and Cornell, this one also owned by Tessie Esry; and a 1:55.4 triumph for the 3-year-old Chapter Seven gelding Vinyl Daddy, driven by Corey Callahan for trainer Robert Baggitt Jr., the latter co-owner with Christine Baggitt and J L Sadovsky LLC.
Besides Tetrick’s six-bagger, Corey Callahan won three times, while two wins were notched by Mark Herschberger and Trae Porter. DiDomenico had the only conditioning double.
Friday’s (Oct. 16) 12:25 p.m. card is topped by the distaff pacers, with top-level competition for both the fast-class and the up-and-coming groups. On Sunday (Oct. 18), Philly will have female drivers fill the gate in two races in support of the Pink-Out movement promoting curing of and information about breast cancer. Free Philly program pages are or will be available at www.phha.org.