Sires Stakes Spectacular In New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Sets Up Profit-Prospects For Weekend

Hambletonian hopefuls will spar across state lines this weekend, with colts and fillies contesting in the opening preliminary of the New Jersey Sires Stakes (NJSS) at the Meadowlands on Friday, May 19, and colts in competition at The Meadows on Saturday, May 20 in three divisions of the Pennsylvania Sires Stakes (PASS). More fillies also compete on Saturday at Mohawk Racetrack in the $130,130 final of the Ontario S.B.O.A. Stakes.

Opening the Friday program at the Meadowlands is the first division of NJSS for the filly trotters. Hopefuls Hillarmbro, Glitzey Gal, Feed Your Head, and Evelyn compete alongside three ineligible foes. Of the hopeful fillies, Hillarmbro and, more likely, Evelyn should provide value by the glitz and glamour of Glitzey Gal, who enters off a parked-mile victory against condition trotters two weeks ago. Hillarmbro and Evelyn both enter off decent qualifiers, and were classy enough to contest with these gals last year. They should debut well

Division two of the NJSS caps the Pick 5 and also features the return of freshman champ Ariana G. She races against fellow hopefuls Dream Baby Dream, Ice Attraction, Cameron Hill, and Northern Starlight.

Now, we don’t need to be the ones to tell you about the supremacy of Ariana G, nor would we. She will definitely be a tough pillar to topple but, in the event the framework of this race collapses, Dream Baby Dream may finally shine. A talented filly from the Allen Brothers, she has either broke or trotted an awful trip, preventing her to display her full potential. She draws the rail against the champion but will certainly have to improve if to best her

Round one for the colts gathers Hambo eligibles Fly On, Southwind Woody, Long Tom and Deacon Tony, of which favoritism will likely slide towards Deacon Tony off three sharp miles against conditioned stock. Value in the race most likely lies in his neighbor Long Tom, who makes his seasonal debut. Off a sharp qualifier against high-ranking competitors on the Hambletonian Trail such as Walner and Devious Man, he will hopefully be overlooked by his more conditioned rival but should not have any trouble matching strides.

King On The Hill, probable-favorite What The Hill, New Jersey Viking, Southwind Cobra, and Signal Hill meet in the latter division of the NJSS for the colts. A nice price in this race could possibly come from Signal Hill, who would have to improve off of adequate qualifiers to beat public choice What The Hill. He’s capable of racing with this bunch, however, nearly besting What The Hill in an elimination for the William Wellwood Memorial last fall. After some breaking issues towards the end of the season, he appears to be maturing, and will certainly be the right price to challenge the favorite.

Next, a total of 18 Hambletonian hopefuls go in three divisions of the $146,628 PASS at the Meadows on May 20. The opening division attracts eligibles Perfect Spirit, Coogan, Di Oggi, Sortie, Giveitgasandgo, and Dover Dan

Yet, with all those trotters, value may reside outside of the hopefuls with High Glider, making the fourth start of his career. Winning two races in a row leading up to this event, he appears to have the right racing style to possibly snag the victory from a volatile pace. With Dave Palone aboard, however, the amount of value present on this guy could be greatly lessened

What A Cantab, Stealth Hanover, Monteverdi, Simply Volo, Snowstorm Hanover, and Don Dream line up in the second PASS division next to three ineligibles. Of those ineligible, Andy M is an upset contender off two wins in Ohio to start his season. Landing on the Grand Circuit towards the end of last year, he was able to be somewhat contentious but likely needed time to grow before tackling the big leagues again. Entering this event sharp, he could get the right set up to beat the chalk.

The third division features hopefuls Brown Bear, Limerence, Brand New Key, Meme Hanover, Affair Of Honor, and Explosive Ridge. Once again, value is located with an ineligible trotter, this time with Common Parlance, making his second start of the season and his first on Lasix. Faltering on the lead as the favorite at Tioga last out, he should be sharper in his second start of the year, and should be positioned well enough to be a factor.

Lastly, four Oaks hopefuls contest in the $130,130 Ontario S.B.O.A. Final Saturday night at Mohawk. They are Magic Presto, Gravitator, Royal Witch, and Anikadabra.

Off a second-place finish in her elimination, Gravitator has the ability to best Magic Presto, who will be the resounding favorite. If this Luc Blais-trained filly is somehow sent to the start at odds of 6-1 or greater, she’s worth the gamble against the Ontario star whose elimination performance was flattered by weak competition.

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The racing of classic divisions—soph-colt-and-filly trotters—on their quest to the Hambletonian and Hambletonian Oaks finals continues its exclusive, extended coverage from TwinSpires and the Hambletonian Society. Recaps of races covered in this blog can be found at the archive section of the web’s home for the Hambletonian Society.