from the Meadowlands Publicity Department

East Rutherford, NJ — While it was no surprise that trainer Mickey Burke reached the winner’s circle in the $70,000 Exit 16W on Saturday night (Feb. 24) at the Meadowlands, it was the horse he won with that was a shocker.

In a 50-1 upset, Trueland Hanover ($103.40, $14.20, $3.40) closed from the back of the pack to snap the seven-race winning streak of his stablemate and 1-5 favorite JK CU Later ($2.40, $2.10). Driven by Andy Miller, Trueland Hanover equaled the stakes record with his 1:50.2 clocking in the evening’s fourth race.

The race set up perfectly for JK CU Later as he popped off second-over cover in the stretch, but despite the urging of his driver Ron Pierce, he could not withstand the late charge of his stablemate and narrowly held on for second over Carr’s Character ($2.20).

“I just went to the wood,” said winning driver Andy Miller. “A bunch of them left and got mixed up in the first turn – a lot of action around there – and I got lucky and stayed inside. I saved a lot of ground in the first turn. (Entering the stretch) I was still down on the rail behind, pretty close to last, and there was a big wall of horses in front of me. I just found a way out, three or four-wide there, and then he just took off. Things broke his way, but I think he’s for real, too. He’s got a big gait to him and he goes a long way.”

A 4-year-old son of The Panderosa, Trueland Hanover was a $47,000 purchase by owner George Leon of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, at the Tattersalls Mixed Sale in January at the Meadowlands. Lifetime, he has won five of 29 starts for $94,107 in earnings.

“This horse has been improving,” said Ron Burke, who trains the Burke Stables’ New Jersey string. “If you keep him covered, he can pace in the stretch. Did I think he could outpace our other horse? No.

“It was a funny week for him,” Burke said of JK CU Later. “He coughed a couple of times and we took blood. When we warmed up he wasn’t as sharp and I saw Pierce had to chase him. There’s been some sickness running through our barn, especially with the 4-year-olds and he might have gotten zapped by it. He didn’t race badly, he just got beat.”

Artist’s View paints Jr. Trendsetter masterpiece

In the $90,400 Junior Trendsetter Final, Artist’s View ($5.40, $3.40, $3.20) popped out of the pocket, looked the leader Be Bad Bill ($2.80, $2.60) in the eye and passed him by for a 1:50.2 score. It was a length back to Spin Rate ($5.00), who benefited from a ground-saving journey to finish third in the night’s sixth race.

Driven by George Brennan and trained by Buzzy Sholty, Artist’s View notched his third win in four starts this season. After a late miscue cost him the victory in the first round of the series, he rebounded with a 1:52.4 victory in last week’s second leg.

“With post 10, I just knew that I had to go forward and advance him,” Brennan said. “I got to the lead and I was lucky enough to follow the horse that I thought I had to beat (Be Bad Bill). He held pretty strong. Buzzy did a good job with him. A couple of weeks ago, he was banging a knee and he got him off the knee, and all the credit goes to him there. I got a lucky trip and things turned out good.”

Sholty paid particular attention to the Artsplace colt’s shoeing heading into the Junior Trendsetter.

“I’ve been struggling a little with him and this racetrack,” Sholty said. “The track’s been different night to night with cold weather to, sometimes, like tonight, it’s not as cold and they’re getting water on the racetrack and he wasn’t quite as steady as he was the last two weeks. It’s greenness and it’s conformation. The horse stands toed-out and he goes to his knees, he’s just naturally that way. I shoe all my own horses and I’ve really been trying to work with him and I’m not sure that I have him 100 percent yet.

“He’s mapped out for a lot of stakes, but I want to speak to the owner and back off the Matt’s Scooter next week,” Sholty said of his future plans for the colt. “I want to give him a break. It’s early in the year and he has a lot more money later on. Second or third in those big stakes is better than winning some of these small stakes.”

Artist’s View is owned by the DM Stables of Naples, Florida, and William Rufenacht of Archbold, Ohio.

Mister Big swoops field In Aquarius

In the final stakes race of the night, race eight, Mister Big ($7.80, $4.20, $3.20) employed his sizable rally to swoop the field in the $74,000 Aquarius Final.

With Brian Sears in the sulky, Mister Big closed from ninth at the top of the stretch to post a neck victory over Fox Valley Appeal ($4.80, $3.00) in 1:51.2. Real Mean Art ($4.80) was third.

“I was last and I know it looked like a terrible steer, but he really loves to pass horses,” Sears said. “I was really still confident, even though we weren’t going much, because he’s so talented he can really make up ground in a hurry. He’s got some vicious high speed and he can pick them up from anywhere.”

Owner Joe Muscara of Huntington Valley, Pennsylvania, purchased the runner-up in the 2006 Three-Year-Old Breeders Crown Pace for a hefty $255,000 at the Harrisburg mixed sale last November. Trained by Virgil Morgan, Jr., the son of Grinfromeartoear has won five of seven starts for his new connections, including last week’s second leg of the Aquarius and the Willowdale Series Final at Woodbine. Mister Big‘s bankroll is now $507,271.