Hambo candidates take final tighteners in Tompkins

Dan Patch Award-winner Anoka Hanover and Italian-bred Colonial As will be among the 3-year-old harness racing trotters getting final tune-ups in the march toward Hambletonian Day in Saturday’s divisions of the Arthur Tompkins Memorial Stakes at The Meadowlands.

Anoka Hanover, trained by Noel Daley, was among 18 female trotters entered in the Tompkins, which was split into two $46,450 divisions. She is the 4-1 morning-line second choice in the second division, leaving from post seven with driver Todd McCarthy. Piper Hanover, trained by Tony Alagna, is the 2-1 favorite.

Last year, Anoka Hanover won 10 of 14 races and was both the richest ($587,758) and fastest (1:52.3) 2-year-old filly trotter in North America.

This season, she has one win and a second in five starts. She raced four consecutive weeks from May 21 to June 13 before getting some time off. She returned July 10 with a fourth-place finish from post seven in a division of the W.N. Reynolds Memorial at The Meadowlands.

“We gave her four starts in a row pretty quickly and then she had a month off,” Daley said. “That was by design. She was good her first start back.”

She skipped last week’s Del Miller Memorial, which also was in Daley’s plans to prepare his filly for the upcoming Hambletonian Oaks eliminations and, he hopes, final. Eliminations for the Oaks are July 31 and the $500,000 final is Aug. 7 at The Meadowlands.

“I planned on missing last week because I wanted to race three weeks in a row,” said Daley, who co-owns the filly with Caviart Farms, Crawford Farms Racing, and L.A. Express Stable. “I figured a few of the better ones probably wouldn’t race this week.

“I still think mine is the best one out there. She’s never been super gaited. Speed and power wise, she’s as good or better than most of them. But she has her issues. They’re all manageable, so we’ll see how she progresses. Hopefully, we’re (racing) three weeks in a row from here.”

Piper Hanover has won four of five starts this year and heads to the Tompkins off a win over Anoka Hanover in the Reynolds.

In the first Tompkins division, Ron Burke-trained Hot As Hill is the 3-1 morning-line choice. She has hit the board in six of eight races this year, winning two, and was third in a division of the Miller last week. She is one of two Miller participants returning this week in the Tompkins, along with the third-place finisher in the other division, Lucas Wallin’s May Karp.

Sixteen of the 18 fillies in the Tompkins are eligible to the Hambletonian Oaks.

Colonial As, trained by Per Engblom, is among 11 Hambletonian eligibles in the two seven-horse divisions of the Tompkins for 3-year-old male trotters. Also entered in the event were Dan Patch Award-winner Venerate and O’Brien Award-winner On A Streak.

Unraced at 2, Colonial As has won five of eight races this season. He is 8-1 on the morning line in the second Tompkins division, where he will start from post five with Todd McCarthy. Last week, the colt finished fifth in a conditioned race won by Yonkers Trot champion Johan Palema. The field also included one of this season’s top trotting fillies in terms of wins and speed, Bella Bellini, who finished second, and 2020 Breeders Crown runner-up In Range, who was third.

The Tompkins will be Colonial As’ first Grand Circuit race. All five of his wins have come at Harrah’s Philadelphia.

“I got him last year at the end of May, I think,” said Engblom, who conditions the son of Readly Express-Piaf Dei Fiori for owner Buckstone Land Livestock. “He’s a big, leggy, horse. We qualified him a couple times and then turned him out because he needed time.”

Colonial As has raced twice at The Meadowlands. The first time was June 25 when he went off stride and finished sixth. Last week, he was timed in 1:52 in his fifth-place finish.

“We started him at (Philly this year) because he’s got very good technique going through the turns,” Engblom said. “The first time we took him to The Meadowlands, he was sick. I was happy with his last start. He needed the fast mile to get some speed in his legs. He trained very good Wednesday, so hopefully he’s going to be moving forward.”

Colonial As is fully staked in North America, including to the Hambletonian, but also could return to Italy later this year for the Italian Derby.

“He would really have to prove himself on Saturday,” Engblom said about sending the colt to the Hambletonian, adding the Muscle Hill could be a possibility on Hambletonian weekend. “He’s been doing so well that I don’t want to throw him to the wolves too much before he’s really ready for it. I think he’s a really nice colt. His time will come. He’s feeling very well about himself and he’s nice and sound. Hopefully, I can keep him that way.”

New Jersey Sire Stakes champion Really Fast, trained by Nancy Takter, is the 7-5 morning-line favorite in the second Tompkins division. Venerate, trained by Julie Miller, is the 8-5 favorite in the second.

Kindergarten begins Friday

The first round of the Kindergarten Classic Series for 2-year-old pacers and trotters is Friday at The Meadowlands. There will be four divisions for female trotters, three divisions for male trotters and female pacers, and one division for male pacers.

Daley will send out eight horses on Friday in the series, including Palermo Hanover, who is a full sister to Piper Hanover.

The second round of the Kindergarten is in mid-September.

“It fits in well for them to go there,” Daley said. “It’s a couple of months until the next leg, so I wanted them to get some experience and get some points. A few of them have had one or two starts and have been pretty good. We always start a little bit later, there is so much racing now, that this is a good spot.”

The Big M and TrackMaster have teamed to regularly provide free past performances for each race card. Past performances can be found here on The Meadowlands website.