North America Cup winner wins four-year-old debut

OAK GROVE, Ky. — North America Cup champ It’s My Show (Sweet Lou) made a successful 4-year-old harness racing debut in one of seven $50,000 Kentucky Sire Stakes (KYSS) splits on a betting-record-breaking Monday (May 6) at Oak Grove Racing, Gaming & Hotel.

Off the 1-2 favorite in his division, Scott Zeron sent It’s My Show from post 6 to the point through a :26.3 first quarter and snagged a breather to a :56 half before encountering a fierce first-over challenge from Blue Lou (driven by Yannick Gingras). Blue Lou pressed It’s My Show to three-quarters in 1:23.4 and persistently pestered the pacesetter into the straightaway to no avail. It’s My Show cut the corner and then kept a head up on Blue Lou to snatch the win in 1:50.2 with Combustion (Todd McCarthy) third and Bamboozler (Tony Hall) fourth.

IT’S MY SHOW REPLAY

It’s My Show has now won 10 times from 25 starts, earning $1,161,965 for owners Richard and Joanne Young. Linda Toscano trains the 4-year-old gelding who paid $3.06 to win.

Admiral Hill (Sweet Lou, Yannick Gingras) delivered as the chalk in the other division for pacing horses and geldings with a near pillar-to-post win in 1:51.3. Gingras floated Admiral Hill forward and grabbed the lead by a :26.4 quarter and coasted through the remainder. Clocking a :55 half and 1:23.1 three-quarters, Gingras cued Admiral Hill to sprint for home and easily rebuffed the pocket pop from El Rey (David Miller) to win by three-quarter lengths with Tip Top Cat (Dexter Dunn) third and Cant Stop Lou (Scott Zeron) fourth.

ADMIRAL HILL REPLAY

A 4-year-old gelding , Admiral Hill has now won 12 times from 29 tries and earned $347,008. Per Engblom trains the $4.94 winner for owner Morrison Racing Stables.

Bestfriend Volo (Walner, Dexter Dunn) made a strong Oak Grove debut in the second of two splits for the trotting horses and geldings with a 1:52.3 front-stepping win.

Dunn swooped to the lead past a :27.1 first quarter and rolled to a :56 half before facing a blitz from Sparks Fly (Atlee Bender) to three-quarters in 1:24.2. Sparks Fly near last-to-front attack proved taxing through the final turn, which left Bestfriend Volo to stride in a measured winner by three-quarter lengths. French Wine (Andy Miller), off a pocket ride, zipped up for second while Sparks Fly levelled off into third and The Hazelton (Yannick Gingras) took fourth.

BESTFRIEND VOLO REPLAY

Nancy Takter trains and co-owns Bestfriend Volo, a gelding, with Christina Takter, 3 Brothers Stables and Deja Blu. He paid $4.76 to win.

Once In A Lifetime (Father Patrick, Todd McCarthy) took the second male trot under wraps in 1:55.1. McCarthy placed the 2-5 favorite on the lead from the pylon post through a :27.3 first quarter and trotted unfazed through a :57.4 half and 1:27.1 three-quarters in progress to a 1:55.1 win over pocket-sitter Morning Edition (Atlee Bender). Ahadi As (Tony Hall) tucked inside and closed through a seam to take third from The Fast Lane (Andy McCarthy) finishing down the center of the track for fourth.

ONCE IN A LIFETIME REPLAY

Sad Frog Farms owns Once In A Lifetime, a gelding who has now won 11 times from 25 starts and banked $475,197. Jim Campbell trains the $2.72 winner.

Show Me A Million (Dover Dan, Lewayne Miller) pulled an upset in the opening male trot split when winning as the second-longest shot on the board in 1:55.1. Miller moved first over with his charge after sitting third through splits of :28.2 and :58 to draw onto closer terms with leader Country Dagger (Andy McCarthy) by three-quarters in 1:26.2. Show Me A Million kept chugging through the straightaway and downed Country Dagger at the beam by a head while Prince Of Honor (Todd McCarthy) flew from last for third and Djimon (David Miller) took fourth from 1-2 favorite Ari Ferrari J (Dexter Dunn), who broke stride in the stretch.

SHOW ME A MILLION REPLAY

Winning his sixth race from 25 starts, Show Me A Million has now earned $141,253. Susan Miller trains the stallion for owners L & S Racing, Fred Wittmer, George Kucik Jr. and Joni Beechy. He paid $17 to win.

Mambacita (Tactical Landing, Dexter Dunn) again rolled on the lead to deliver as the 1-5 choice in the lone division for trotting mares. Dunn seized the helm to a :28.1 first quarter and grabbed a breather to a :57.2 half, which readied her for the attack from Railee Something (Andy McCarthy) up the backside. Railee Something loomed to Mambacita’s throat past three-quarters in 1:25.3 but tired into the stretch to leave Mambacita on a 2-1/4-length lead by the beam. Cessna Pride (Todd McCarthy) took third and Muscling Vegas (David Miller) finished fourth.

MAMBACITA REPLAY

Tony Alagna trains Mambacita, a 4-year-old mare, for owners Crawford Farms Racing, Alagna Racing LLC and Pryde Stables Inc. She won her 13th race from 33 starts and added to a bankroll now worth $845,418 while paying $2.56 to win.

Keep My Secret (Captaintreacherous, Tony Hall) landed a 9-1 upset in the last KYSS split of the day, the single dash for pacing mares, with a 1:51 power effort on the point. Hall launched for the lead to a :26.4 first quarter and stole a breather to the half in :56.4. From there, she endured a first-over push from Always B Naughty (Andy McCarthy) to three-quarters in 1:23.4 and stayed under wraps into the straightaway, where Hall gave her a few taps of the whip as she confidently coasted in a three-quarter length winner over pocket-sitter Hungry For Love (Scott Zeron). Always B Naughty settled for third and 6-5 favorite Strong Poison (Yannick Gingras), off a second-over trip, settled for fourth.

KEEP MY SECRET REPLAY

A homebred mare for Dr. Fred Kruszelnicki, Keep My Secret has now won nine races from 26 starts and earned $161,240. Anette Lorentzon trains the $20.16 winner.

Despite a track maintenance delay that pushed post time 80 minutes back, Oak Grove crushed its single-card betting record with its 13-race card lasting until Monday’s dusk. Oak Grove handled $522,939.11, besting the previous record set last May of $419,168.

Live racing resumes at Oak Grove on Tuesday (May 7) at 3 p.m. (CDT) with a plethora of carryovers on offer. The 20-cent Early Pick 5, starting in Race 1, features a carryover of $4,207.79; the $1 Early Pick 4, starting in Race 3, features a carryover of $1,309.58; the $1 Late Pick 4, starting in Race 9, features a carryover of $1,630.58; and the 20-cent Super High 5, offered in Race 12, features a carryover of $1,003.29. Free program pages for every race day, courtesy of TrackMaster, are available on the Oak Grove Racing website.

For complete race results, click here: US Trotting results.

From Oak Grove Racing