Simon Says Hanover vs. Covered Bridge at Yonkers

We have an interesting harness racing battle brewing in the Yonkers Raceway Invitational Pace on Monday night (Feb. 12) with streaking Simon Says Hanover (Captaintreacherous) stepping up to tackle win machine Covered Bridge (American Ideal) and three other consistent aged pacers.

Simon Says Hanover drew the middle of the gate, and he comes in hot, having taken three straight wins in the 3 to 6-year-old Open for trainer Jared Bako. Most recently on January 31st, he was a 1:52.3 winner, and that victory was his sixth win in his past seven tries at Yonkers. He finished second in the one loss.

Simon Says Hanover unleashed a :27.3 final quarter in that win and his high late speed has been the hallmark of his current hot streak. He races for owner Randy Zane of Quebec and he looks to add to his $360,000 in earnings. But he will need all that late speed to take down Yonkers king and 2 to 1 morning line favorite Covered Bridge.

The Jeff Gillis pupil comes off his 19th lifetime win at the Hilltop oval, a game 1:52.3 nose victory over Coaches Corner in last week’s Invitation Pace.

That was Covered Bridge’s 46th win in his 139th start in a remarkably consistent career that also featured 19 seconds and 22 thirds, good for $1.18 million in lifetime earnings. Jordan Stratton, who guided the eight-year-old gelding to his last two wins takes the lines tonight. Covered Bridge gets the widest post for the third straight start.

The remaining trio of Invitational pacers are no slouches by any means.

Adam Twelve (Luck Be Withyou) has recorded six wins and three seconds in nine Yonkers starts since being bought and shipped east from Indiana last fall. Teamster Yannick Gingras is part of the ownership group that purchased the gelding who has returned $80,426 in the nine starts since the sale. Leading Yonkers trainer Per Engblom sends out the four-year-old who was initially bought for a modest $9,000 at the 2021 Hoosier Sale.

In his most recent start, Adam Twelve set the pace to the stretch but he could not hold off the persistent winner, Simon Says Hanover. He once again drew the rail for the Invitational and he no doubt will be prominent throughout again.

Lined up to Adam Twelve’s immediate right will be Sonny Weaver N (Sunshine Beach) who comes into the race off a dominant four-length win in the non-winners of $30,541 last five class, beating solid veteran Billy Clyde. The $18,243 he earned from that win was his biggest payday in North America since shipping overseas in the summer of 2021.

The eight-year-old gelding, who will be sent out by trainer Jeff Cullipher, has taken 37 wins from 125 starts, with 14 seconds and 19 thirds, good for just over $506,000 in earnings. Last season, he took nine wins from 32 starts andearned more that $156,000. He is owned by Pollack Racing Llc of Pennsylvania.

Classy and consistent Leonidas A (Mach Three) rounds out the field and he leaves from post four. He has been a win machine in his 117- race career. The nine-year-old Matthew Medeiros trained gelding has compiled a terrific 49-21-15 record. The Australian bred’s biggest North American win came in the $100,000 2020 Potomac Pace at Rosecroft Raceway, where he took his lifetime mark of 1:48.0. That night, he defeated Bettors Wish, who would go on to take the Aged Pacer of the Year Dan Patch Award.

Leonidas A came off the shelf to finish third to Covered Bridge last week. He can improve in this second start back. Regular driver Austin Seigelman handles the driving duties for trainer Matthew Medeiros and owner Jesmeral Stable of New York.

Here is the field for the Invitation Pace which goes as race 10 on the 12-race card and is scheduled to go to post at 10:00 p.m. Eastern.

1. Adam Twelve – Yannick Gingras 3/1

2. Sonny Weaver N – George Brennan 4/1

3. Simon Says Hanover – Matt Kakaley 5/2

4. Leonidas A – Austin Seigelman 6/1

5. Covered Bridge – Jordan Stratton 2/1

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

by Garnet Barnsdale, for Harnesslink