Sixteen sophomore pacing colts are set to line up behind the Scioto Downs starting gate in a pair of $50,000 Ohio Sires Stakes contests on Saturday night, June 9.
First Race post time is 6:30 pm, ET, with the two OSS events scheduled as Race Five (7:50 pm) and Race Ten (9:30 pm) in round two of the four-leg series.
OSS combatants include Leg 1 winners Bounding Dragon and Rockn Motion, who'll square off in the first division (Race 5). Hailing from the Mike Roth stable, Bounding Dragon prevailed impressively in 1:53 in his first OSS test on May 6 at Miami Valley.
The Dragon Again colt-who is owned by the Ohio partnership of Alan Keith of Johnstown and Carl & Melanie Atley of Xenia, then sped to a 1:50.4 clocking in a Hoosier Park overnight on May 25-making him one of two of the fastest colts in this division (the other is Cinnamack, who was fourth in OSS Leg 1, but who also won in 1:50.4 in an identical event at that same Indiana raceway).
Bounding Dragon, a winner of $116,159 lifetime and $44,750 this season, has drawn the rail and is reunited with his regular driver, Josh Sutton, in here.
RocknMotion, a son of Pet Rock conditioned by Kimberly Dailey, won his first OSS test with an extraordinary three-wide move around the final turn to notch the victory by three-quarters of a length over $227,3355-earner Seeing Eye Single (also in this same division) in 1:51.4. Ron Mersky of Paris, KY, owns and bred the bay colt, who has $40,425 in career earnings from four wins and a second in nine lifetimes starts. He was unraced as a freshman.
In the second division (Race 10), Slick Mick and Rockathon face off-both having finished third in Leg 1. Rockathon will be harnessed by Kimberly Dailey, who owns the gelded son of Pet Rock with Carl & Melanie Atley of Xenia. This winner of $161,012 lifetime recorded a mark of 1:51.3 in his Scarlet & Gray triumph on April 28 at Miami Valley and has $41,050 in his coffers this season.
Slick Mick is conditioned by Brian Brown for Milton Leeman of Columbus, OH and has $22,500 thus far in earnings this season with a pair of wins in four starts. Lifetime, he's amassed $92,748, with a 1:51.4 record taken at Scioto Downs on May 24. He's drawn the rail for driver Ryan Stahl, while Rockathon gets Danny Noble in the sulky once more.
Trotting fillies in OSS go on Monday
Ohio Sires Stakes action continues on Monday evening, June 11 at Northfield Park, when 3-year-old trotting fillies line up behind the starting gate in Leg 2 action.
Two, $50,000 Ohio Sires Stakes divisions for 3-year-old trotting fillies will be contested on Monday evening, June 11 at Northfield Park Racino, in the second of four legs of the rich series for Ohio-sired foals. First race post time is 6 pm, ET.
Leg 1 winners Red Storm and Non Smoker are set to battle in the second division (Race 5, post time 7:20 pm), and will be joined by Looking For Zelda, who captured a $24,455 Currier & Ives division at The Meadows in 1:54.1 on June 5.
Red Storm, a Chris Beaver trainee owned by breeder Sandra Burnett of Wilmington, OH, won OSS Leg 1 decisively in a career best 1:55.4 on May 4 at Miami Valley Raceway. The chestnut daughter by Stormin Normand earned $109,975 as a freshman, and has returned to her winning ways this season, with three triumphs and a second in four starts and $65,000 in seasonal earnings. Aaron Merriman pilots Red Storm from the rail.
Non Smoker was equally as decisive, with a 1:54 clocking in her OSS Leg 1 victory via a wire-to-wire performance, where she held off the hard-trying Risky Deal (also in this same division) by half a length at the wire. The daughter by My MVP, who is owned by Stephen Sexton of Xenia, OH and was bred by Stephanie Smith-Rothaug, has seasonal earnings of $37,300 and a career bankroll of $57,851 from four wins, one second and one third in 11 lifetime trips postward. Danny Noble trains and drives.
Robert Key’s Looking for Zelda is no stranger to the OSS program—having earned $228,675 at two for her owner/breeder during her freshman campaign. Though she was third in her OSS Leg 1 division, she rebounded smartly to take the Currier & Ives earlier this week under the watchful eye of trainer Norm Parker. From three starts this season she has two wins and $43,227 in the bank. Tony Hall steers this rugged filly.
In the first OSS division (Race 3, post time 6:40 pm) Impinktoo gets the benefit of the rail for the ownership troika of Billy Walters, Joe McLead and Rtk Racing. Formerly trained by Jim & Kim Dailey and now starting for trainer Ronnie Burke for the first time, this Manofmanymissions filly banked $167,040 at 2 and most recently captured a Scioto overnight in 1:55.3 as the public’s choice on June 1. Jay Mossbarger bred this diagonally-gaited distaff. Kayne Kauffman gets the nod.
by Kimberly Rinker, for the Ohio State Racing Commission