Three straight for top Minnesota trotter

Among the featured harness racing events on the Sunday night (July 7) program at Running Aces were 3 divisions of sophomore Minnesota-sired trotters, going for a total purse of $42,500.

In the $17,000 male ‘A’ division, DP Freedom’s Chrome (For You Almostfree) was the overwhelming favorite and was in search of his third straight Aces win.

Driver James Gould wasted no time in getting the star trotter to the front of the affair, leaving sharply from post two to take command in the opening strides while Insurrectionist (Brad Irvine) secured the pocket and Wherever Rio Goes (Sean Smithpeters) landed in third through a :28.4 opening quarter.

Things remained the same at the 1:00.4 midway point before Wherever Rio Goes launched a first-over bid down the backside and Banker’s Quest (Jacob Cutting) followed cover.

Around the final turn DP Freedoms Chrome kicked into high gear and opened up by two lengths while Wherever Rio Goes intently pursued the leader and Banker’s Quest made a miscue.

DP FREEDOM’S CHROME REPLAY

The winner now shows 14 wins from 15 career starts and earnings of $106,700 for owner Aimes Racing and trainer Elvin Zimmerman.

Baby Flash (Southwind Flash) turned in a career best effort to capture the $17,000 fillies ‘A’ division in 1:58.3.

Chad Svendsen was in the bike behind Baby Flash and steered her into the pocket early behind race favorite Banker’s Grace (Rick Magee) while Magnolia Moonlight (James Lackey) tracked the leaders from third.

Banker’s Grace led through moderate fractions of :29, 1:00.2 and 1:29 before Baby Flash exploded with trot up the inside to draw away in the lane for a 3-1/4 length tally while Magnolia Moonlight picked up second and Adira Disa rallied from the back of the pack to grab third.

BABY FLASH REPLAY

Baby Flash ($7.00) now shows 15 wins from 21 career outings and has earned $115,654 for owner/trainer Rick Huffman and additional owners Keith Wilson and Brenda Lovetinksky.

Adeline Rose (Braggart) was a sharp looking winner in the $8,500 sophomore ‘B’ division, trotting in a career best 2:02.4 to capture her second lifetime win over Finale Jetta (Bradndon Jenson) and Polished Arrow (Justin Van Otterloo).

Mooney Svendsen was the winning pilot for owners Ken Stauffer and Cathy Dessert. The win mutuel returned $3.

Domovoy (Triumphant Caviar) made it 3 in a row in the $15,500 Open Handicap Trot with a gate-to-wire effort over Winnerup (Nick Roland) and Grab Da Moni (Rick Magee) in 1:53.4.

Jacob Cutting was the winning driver for owner Dave Dobbelmann and trainer Edwin Quevedo.

DOMOVOY REPLAY

Domovoy ($2.60) now shows six wins in 14 starts this year and has seasonal earnings of $50,935.

Drivers James Lackey and Elson Miller both had doubles while Miller and Edwin Quevedo had training doubles on the card.

Live Racing returns to Running Aces on Tuesday night (July 9) for a nine-race program featuring ‘Dollar Night’ specials and free bet drawings. First post is set for 7 p.m. (CDT).

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

by Darin Gagne, for Running Aces