by Ken Weingartner, Harness Racing Communications
Freehold, NJ — Three of the top stars in harness racing — Donato Hanover, Always A Virgin and Southwind Tempo — won qualifiers Friday at Gaitway Farms in central New Jersey as they prepare for the upcoming Breeders Crown at the Meadowlands Racetrack.
Hambletonian champion Donato Hanover, the No. 1-rated horse in North America, won his qualifier in 1:54.4 with regular driver Ron Pierce in the sulky. Donato Hanover’s most recent race was Oct. 6 when he won the Kentucky Futurity in straight heats at Lexington’s Red Mile. His second heat time of 1:50.1 equaled the fastest trotting mile in history.
Donato Hanover sat second through the opening quarter-mile, reached in :29, before moving to the front as the horses made their way down the backstretch. The fractions were :58 at the half and 1:26.1 at the three-quarter point.
“I told him to go around (1):55 or (1):56, but it looked like he did it pretty handy,” trainer Steve Elliott said. “He jogged a couple weeks; took it easy. I brought him over here last week and trained him in (1):57. He’s just been training back slowly.”
Donato Hanover has won all 11 of his starts this year and set a record for trotters for single season earnings with $2.2 million. He has a 19-race win streak dating to last year; his only loss came in his first career start. His final event will be the Breeders Crown, which holds elimination races on Nov. 17 and the final on Nov. 24.
“We’re ready to rock,” Elliott said. “He’s gained weight and gotten bigger. With a horse like this, you always feel good. I’d rather be in my position than anybody else’s.”
Another of Elliott’s stars, 3-year-old filly pacer Southwind Tempo, won her qualifier in 1:56 with co-owner/former trainer Toby Lynch at the lines. The fractions were :29.3, 1:00.2 and 1:28.3.
“It was a good training mile,” Elliott said. “We like to go around (1:)55 or (1:)56 with her. We’re just trying to tighten these things up and make sure they’re ready to go.”
Southwind Tempo, who is ranked No. 4 in the sport’s Top 10 Poll, most recently finished third in the Jugette at the Delaware County Fairgrounds in Ohio. She has won 15 of 19 races this season and never been worse than third. She has earned $826,104.
“She got real sick after Delaware; she nearly got pneumonia,” Elliott said. “She was really, really sick. We took our time. I wasn’t going to do anything unless she was ready, and if we missed the Breeders Crown, we missed it. We took our time and she seems to be over it.”
Always A Virgin, who is ranked No. 3 in North America, is coming off a win in the Messenger Stakes on Oct. 27 at Yonkers Raceway. He won two-thirds of the Pacing Triple Crown, capturing the Cane Pace in addition to the Messenger. He was third in the Little Brown Jug. The colt has won 12 of 18 races this year and earned $1 million.
He won his qualifier in 1:54.2 off fractions of :28.3, :58.2 and 1:27.4 with regular driver Brian Sears.
“It was fine,” trainer Joe Holloway said. “I was going to train him, but since they had the qualifiers I figured it’s easier to be in there with horses than training him by yourself. That was his first training trip since the Messenger. I’ll train him again next week. He’ll be ready to go; he’s feeling real good.”