Front end place to be in $120,600 NYSS

HAMBURG, N.Y. — The front end was the place to be in the two $60,300 divisions of the New York Sire Stakes for the 3-year-old colt and gelding harness racing pacers at Buffalo Raceway on Wednesday afternoon (June 1) as both Pleaseletmeknow (American Ideal) and Te Amo Blue Chip (Roll With Joe) got the early jump and never looked back.

Pleaseletmeknow (Matt Kakaley) was the quickest of the two legs with a 1:53.1 clocking over the fast track while Te Amo Blue Chip (Mark MacDonald) posted a 1:55.0 over the surface that was downgraded to sloppy due to rain.

There was little suspense in either division as both Pleaseletmeknow ($3.60) and Te Amo Blue Chip ($20.40) reached the top early, posted solid splits, and never were challenged down the lane.

Kakaley stepped on the gas early with Pleaseletmeknow as they notched fractions of :28.1, :57.1, 1:25.4, cruising to a satisfying 2-1/2 length score over Shake It (Jim Morrill Jr.) while 2-year-old NYSS champion JD (MacDonald) ended up in third.

Owned by Fiddler’s Creek Stable, LLC and trained by Travis Alexander, Pleaseletmeknow (American Ideal-I Said Please) is a 3-year-old gelding that has won twice this season in three attempts. The victory launched his 2022 bankroll to $49,425 and $155,697 lifetime.

In the second bracket, Te Amo Blue Chip was the commander of fractions as he rolled out to times of :28.2, :56.4, 1:26.0 in going a 1:54.4 mile. Down the stretch, Te Amo Blue Chip kept Bounty Hunter (Morrill Jr.) out of range until very late and settled for a neck victory with American Zestar (Kakaley) finishing in third.

Trained by John Berger, Te Amo Blue Chip (Roll With Joe-Amora Hanover) is a 3-year-old gelding that has produced two victories in four tries on the year. His earnings moved to $37,840 in 2022 and $65,833 in his career.

 In the $15,000 Excelsior A Series, Lanjo Lee (So Surreal), driven by Tyler Buter, posted an impressive 4-1/2 length score over Kj Unreal (Kakaley) in 1:55.0, returning a paltry $2.10 for the win. The other division saw Kingsville (Huntsville), with Morrill Jr. aboard, turn back Kj Hunter (MacDonald) by a 1-1/4 lengths in 1:56.2, returning $2.60 for the win.

While there were plenty of favorites posting wins on the card, ironically it was Ideal Longshot (Western Ideal) who blew up the tote board in the finale. Driven by Justin Irvine, Ideal Longshot returned $191.50 for the victory and topped the 7-6 exacta which paid $1,445 and the 7-6-8-all superfecta for $6,990.

Kakaley and Irvine each completed the session with driving doubles.

Racing continues on Friday afternoon with a nine-race program slated to begin at 1:30 p.m.

For complete race results, click here.

by Brian J. Mazurek, for Buffalo Raceway