Anderson, IN – Twelve new Indiana Sire Stakes Champions were crowned on Friday (Oct. 11) at Harrah’s Hoosier Park Racing & Casino, with massive upsets abound throughout the evening.
The Hoosier Champions card featured over $2.4 million in purses, with eight $250,000 Indiana Sire Stakes Super Finals for 2- and 3-year-old competitors, to go along with four $70,000 Sire Stakes Finals for Aged competitors.
Two-Year-Old Filly Trot
The Super Final action got underway with Martz Seven pulling a 33-1 shocker with driver Mike Peterson. Leaving from post eight, Martz Seven got away eighth in the field of 10 as the trio of Henry Graber Jr. trainees got away 1-2-3 on the engine through a quarter of :27.2.
The 4-5 favorite, Miracle Maven (John De Long), worked to the front of her stablemates, leading to the half in :57 in front of Classical Jane (Dave Miller) and Better Tak’em (Jordan Ross). Martz Seven found herself with access cover, still in eighth at three-quarters spotting Miracle Maven 9-1/2 lengths at three-quarters with the leader there in 1:26.
The field began to swarm the tiring leader turning for home, with Martz Seven uncorking her rally widest of all, closing but still eighth at the midway point of the stretch. Finding her best stride late, Martz Seven charged home in :27.3 to beat out Classical Jane by three-quarters of a length in 1:55.2. Fifty To Win (Ricky Macomber Jr.) recovered from an early break to rally for the show spot.
Walter Haynes Jr. trains the daughter of Swan For All-La Mirada for owners Stephen Stoll and Black And White Stable. A winner in three of 11 on the year, Martz Seven has banked $210,087 on the season, hitting the board nine times. Martz Seven was bred by Martz Creek Farm and Roman Stoll.
Two-Year-Old Pacing Fillies
The second stakes final for the evening proved to be much more formful with a talented group of 10 freshman fillies going to post in the $250,000 Super Final for 2-year-old pacing fillies. It was Can’ttouchthese who delivered a commanding victory in a new lifetime best of 1:51.1. Driven by John DeLong and trained by Roger Welch, the talented daughter of JK Endofanera—Can’t Touch This sat patiently along the rail in third for much of the mile before tracking down the pace-setting Brookview Fancy and Joey Putnam late in the lane.
Sent off as the betting favorite, Can’ttouchthese returned $3.60 to her backers at the betting window. The filly has now recorded her third straight win and her sixth victory from eight starts while pushing her lifetime bankroll to $255,370.
Can’ttouchthese is owned and was bred by W C DeLong, W P DeLong, and D A Riccolo, who also enjoyed success with the fillies dam on the Indiana Sires Stakes Circuit.
Two-Year-Old Trotting Colts
Euguene The Genius put an exclamation point on his rookie campaign, romping to victory in the 2-year-old colt and gelding trot. Saddled with post eight, driver Mike Oosting hustled Euguene The Genius to the front end, working around Starlitfranknstein (Trace Tetrick) to get to the quarter first in :27.4. The 4-5 favorite slowed the pace down in the middle half, leading fractions of :57.3 and 1:26.3 before turning for home 2-1/2 lengths clear. Sprinting home in :27.3, Euguene The Genius maintained that advantage to the wire in 1:54.1, holding Starlitfranknstein and Tarzan (Dexter Dunn) at bay, who finished second and third, respectively.
Trained by Missy Essig for owners Russ Beeman and Charles Weaver, Eugene The Genius has won eight of 10, having never missed the board in his rookie campaign. The gelded son of Helpisontheway-Muscle Baby Doll was bred by Black Creek Farm and Hickory Hollow Stable, and has now made $355,745 for his career.
Three-Year-Old Trotting Fillies
The biggest upset of the evening was in the $250,000 Indiana Sires Stakes Super Final for 3-year-old trotting fillies as Black Gold was victorious and provided a stunning upset at odds of 129-1. Trained by James Yoder and driven by Braxten Boyd, Black Gold, a daughter of Dover Dan—Hp Guccio Girl, powered past her competitors late in the lane to finish 1-1/4 lengths in front of Skyway Paige and LeWayne Miller.
Stopping the time in 1:54.3, Black Gold returned $260.20 for the win. Heavily-favored Danger made a break going down the backside and finished off the board. Skyway Paige held second while Hail Broadway and Jordan Ross finished third.
Owned by Stephen and Elizabeth Ray, Black Gold pushed her lifetime bankroll to $250,690 and secured her third win from 16 starts this season with the victory.
Three-Year-Old Pacing Fillies
The upsets continued in the 3-year-old pacing fillies as Jada Caroline and Tim Tetrick teamed up for a 10-1 upset over Lets Go Endofaera (De Long). Jada Caroline got away mid-pack in fifth on the first turn with Joey Putnam and a fired-up Lyin’ Eyes cutting the quarter in :26.1.
De Long’s hand was forced from third on the backstretch with the backfield never getting single-file, sending Lets Go Endofaera first-up on the backstretch to engage Lets Go Endofanera and Lyin’ Eyes at the half in :54.3. Jada Caroline was poised from second-over turning for home as the battled raged on the lead with Lyin’ Eyes holding a narrow advantage over Lets Go Endofaera at three-quarters in 1:22.3.
Lets Go Endofaera found more in the lane, putting away Lyin’ Eyes but came under pressure from Jada Caroline who tipped off her cover. The two slugged it out to the wire, with Jada Caroline getting the better of a valiant Lets Go Endofaera by a neck in 1:50.4. All JK (David Miller) finished third at 16-1.
The daughter of Tellitlikeitis-Ideal Plan is trained by Erv Miller for owners Ervin Miller Stable, Louis Willinger and Never 2 Late Stable. Bred by Joseph Nissley, Jada Caroline has won three times in her 13 start sophomore campaign, banking $227,069 on the year and now $280,917 for her career.
Two-Year-Old Pacing Colts
Chandler Bing scored his fourth straight victory, this time in the $250,000 Indiana Sires Stakes Super Final for 2-year-old pacing colts and geldings. Trained by Alvin Miller and driven to victory by Jay Cross, Chandler Bing went first-over at the half before he unleashed a powerful :26.4 closing kick to overtake the pace-setting Avanti and driver Yannick Gingras, late in the lane to stop the timer in 1:51.2. The Family Man and Mike Oosting closed for second, Avanti held for third.
The gelded son of Tellitlikeitis—Northern Beauty is owned by Alvin Miller and Twila Harts and has now recorded his fifth win from nine lifetime starts. Chandler Bing has now amassed $216,790 in lifetime purse earnings.
Three-Year-Old Trotting Colts
Gruesome Twosome remained perfect in the Hoosier State for his 3-year-old campaign, fending off all challengers in the lane as the 2-5 favorite for trainer/driver Daryl Bontrager. Gruesome Twosome had to work to get around CS Flying Co-Pilot (Trace Tetrick) going into the first turn as that one led the field to the quarter pole in :27.4.
Once Gruesome Twosome cleared, Bontrager tapped the brakes on the way to the half in :57.3 before Helpem Dance (Dexter Dunn) moved first-over to challenge the leader at three-quarters in 1:26.4. In the stretch, Gruesome Twosome faced a number of challengers, repelling them all with a :27.4 final quarter to cross the wire first by three parts of a length in 1:54.3. Ira Who (Jared Finn) closed from the clouds late to finish a flying second at 123-1, Flirtnwiththepilot (Andrew McCarthy) finished third at 29-1.
Daryl Bontrager co-owns with Ira Steinberg (who also owns the runner-up) the colt sired by You Know You Do out of the Donato Hanover mare, All Set Lets Go. Bred by Merle Yoder, Gruesome Twosome has won seven of 11 on the year, boasting seasonal earnings of $299,978 and going over a half-million in lifetime earnings.
Three-year-old Pacing Colts
The 3-year-old pacing colts and geldings provided a thrilling finish to the stakes action on the evening as Noblesville and Dale Yeah battled to the wire and finished a head apart on the line.
Noblesville and driver Yannick Gingras prevailed in a tight photo and officially ended the 13-race win streak put together by Sabonis and Joey Putnam. Sitting behind Sabonis, who laid down the fractions of :27.1, :54.4 and 1:22.2, Noblesville converted a pocket trip into a 1:50 score to establish a new lifetime mark. Dale Yeah and Marvin Luna were forced to settle for second while Tellmeitmatters and John DeLong rounded out the trifecta. Sabonis finished fourth.
Trained by Ron Burke, Noblesville recorded his second win from 14 outs this season while pushing his lifetime bankroll to $489,722. Owned in partnership by Burke Racing Stable and Weaver Bruscemi, who also bred the son of JK Endofanera—Happiness. Noblesville has now won six of 29 lifetime starts.
Aged Finals
The four $70,000 Aged Finals saw some of Indiana’s biggest names deliver dazzling performances on their way to victory.
Flagman and trainer/driver Rick Plano swept the field on the final en route to a 3-1/4 length victory over Ponda Jet (Kyle Wilfong) in 1:52.1 to take the aged male trot.
Walkin On Sunshine fended off Rollin Rosie (Trace Tetrick) by a half-length in front-end fashion to take the Aged Mare Pace in 1:50.2 as the 4-5 favorite with trainer Jay Cross in the bike.
M-M’s Dream dominated the field of Aged Trotting Mares by 7-1/2 lenghts after moving to the lead at the quarter, romping in 1:54.2 with Dave Miller driving for trainer Henry Graber Jr. for her third Indiana Sire Stakes title.
Owner Russ Beeman went one-two in the Aged Male Pace, with Little Rocket Man taking his second-straight title as the classy 8-year-old fended off Buzzsaw Russ in the fastest mile of night in 1:49.1 for trainer Ken Rucker and co-owner Boomer Freeman.
Racing concludes for the week at Harrah’s Hoosier Park on Saturday, Oct. 12 with a 12-race card set to get underway at 7 p.m. The Saturday card will feature five $50,000 Indiana Sire Stakes consolations, with a free program available on the Harrah’s Hoosier Park website.
For more information on the 2024 live racing season, guests are encouraged to visit www.harrahshoosierpark.com.
About Harrah’s Hoosier Park
Harrah’s Hoosier Park, which is owned and operated by a subsidiary of Caesars Entertainment, Inc. (NASDAQ: CZR), holds multiple awards from industry publications for customer service, entertainment, gaming, dining, and team member culture. Harrah’s Hoosier Park, a fully-integrated gaming and racing facility, features the newest slots, live table games, sports wagering, and a 7/8 mile oval horse track offering live harness racing each year. For more information, please visit www.HarrahsHoosierPark.com. Must be 18 or older to wager on horse racing at racetracks and 21 or older to gamble at casinos. Know When To Stop Before You Start.® Gambling Problem? Call 1-800-9-WITH-IT (1-800-994-8448) ©2023 Caesars License Company, LLC.