Secret Agent Man storms through slop for Bluegrass Win

LEXINGTON, Ky.— Chapter Seven gelding Secret Agent Man posted the swiftest mile of the three harness racing divisions for the $256,900 Greenshoe Bluegrass Stakes, for 3-year-old colt and gelding trotters, stopping the clock from a front-stepping effort in 1:53.2.

Driver Andy Miller crossed over from post 6 to take the lead with Secret Agent Man moving for the first turn and relaxed on their way to a :29 first quarter. Secret Agent Man continued comfortably on the point while awaiting the move of even-money chalk T C I (driven by David Miller), who tipped first over out of fifth heading to a :57.1 half.

T C I plodded forward through the far turn but reached his reserves as Secret Agent Man hit the pedal. By three-quarters in 1:25, Secret Agent Man scampered away as T C I folded and built enough cushion to roll in a 3-3/4-length winner.

Vic Zelenskyy (Dexter Dunn), mounting a three-wide bid into the stretch, settled for second over pocket-sitting Bargain (Andy McCarthy) and Bryant Bros S (Ake Svanstedt) finished fourth.

SECRET AGENT MAN REPLAY

“He was a really fast 2-year-old, but he wasn’t ready mentally for it,” said Bjorn Bernie Noren of Knutsson Trotting Inc. “Andy and Julie Miller did very good work to get him around.”

Julie Miller trains Secret Agent Man for Knutsson Trotting Inc. along with Andy Miller Stable Inc., Plouffe Racing and Patrick Hoopes. He won his fourth race from 16 starts, has now banked $176,705 and paid $9.78 to win.

Mr Bluebird (Six Pack, Ake Svanstedt) also stamped a pillar-to-post win on the rainy Saturday with a 1:55.1 effort in the second division of the Greenshoe.

Svanstedt secured the lead out of post 2 to a :29.1 first quarter and, despite facing little pressure, increased speed to a :56.3 half. Wild Ticket (Dexter Dunn), the 6-5 favorite, tried to challenge first over from out of third but quickly flattened off three-quarters in 1:25.3, leaving Mr Bluebird to scurry to a three-length lead. Greenspan (David Miller) closed ground down the center of the track all through the stretch but could only manage second, beaten a length. For July (Mattias Melander) came from last for third and Wild Ticket held fourth.

MR BLUEBIRD REPLAY

“We had a problem with him,” said trainer Ake Svanstedt of Mr Bluebird, who has only raced five times in his sophomore season. “Don’t know what it was – I think he was growing too much and he was stiff and couldn’t train so much.”

Now a four-time winner from 15 tries, Mr Bluebird has accrued $187,219 on his card for owners Ake Svanstedt Inc., Little E LLC and Torbjorn Swahn Inc. The colt by Six Pack paid $5.44 to win.

Highland Kismet (Father Patrick, Bob McClure) muscled off tepid fractions to a widening open-length win in the final division of the Greenshoe Bluegrass.

McClure eased Highland Kismet into contention and had ample room to settle as Bella’s Musclehill (David Miller) led a three-wide wave for the lead to a :28 first quarter. Bella’s Musclehill remained revved once planting onto the front in the backstretch and clocked a :57.2 half as his foes waited to strike. McClure got Highland Kismet underway entering the final turn and fanned wider as horses angled from the pylons in a slog to three-quarters, timed in 1:27.3.

Highland Kismet had the most momentum rounding the bottom corner and cruised to the lead upon straightening while expanding his advantage with each stride under a firm McClure grip. He crossed the line 4-1/2 lengths better than Bella’s Musclehill in the 1:55.1 mile while Flying Kronos S (Yannick Gingras) took third and Benny J (Andy McCarthy) faded off a pocket trip for fourth.

HIGHLAND KISMET REPLAY

“His last start: he just choked,” McClure said after the race, speaking on Highland Kismet’s break in stride in the $527,620 Canadian Trotting Classic. “He got ramped up getting out of there, horses came out under him and I was in a bad spot. I had no intention of racing him off the pace [today], but I got caught in a similar situation. Between two horses, he didn’t want to go up to the car. Luckily though, he was an absolute sweetheart in the hole. The way it all worked out – that’s the way you want to go into the [Kentucky] Futurity. That’s probably as good or the best that he’s been.”

Unraced at 2, Highland Kismet continues to pile onto his resume with now eight wins from 13 tries and $485,806 banked for owner-breeder Highland Thoroughbred Farm. Mark Etsell trains the Father Patrick gelding who paid $2.60 to win.

Each division of the Greenshoe Bluegrass Stakes was sponsored by the Greenshoe Syndicate and Hanover Shoe Farms.

Racing resumes at The Red Mile next Friday (Oct. 4) to kick off the closing week of the Grand Circuit meet. Friday’s card will feature the $275,000 (est.) International Stallion Stakes for 2-year-old trotting colts and geldings and the $250,000 (est.) International Stallion Stakes for 2-year-old pacing fillies. First-race post time at The Red Mile is 1 p.m. (EDT).

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

by Ray Cotolo, for The Red Mile