Dover Downs' 49th harness racing season ended when Déjà vu Blue, Super Fly, Go Sandy Go and Slick Tony were winners of $100,000 Delaware Standardbred Breeders Funds (DSBF) finals and Major Uptrend won the $35,000 Preferred pace on the closing card of it's 2017-2018 season on Thursday, March 29.
With Delaware Gov. John Carney and members of his staff on hand, as usual a large crowd of fans turned out to watch the four state-bred three-year-old trotting and pacing finals, two 1:49.4 feature races and meet horsemen top honors presented.
Tim Tetrick was Leading Driver during the 81-programs season. Tetrick fininshed with 11 wins more than Corey Callahan, who had won the previous seven titles in a row. Dylan Davis was Leading Trainer at the meet for the fifth consecutive season.
Free For Aller Sicily, who won five top features with sub-1:50 victories including 1:48.4, the fastest time of the Meet, won a tight ballot by Delaware Valley chapter U.S. Harness Writers Assocation members, voted Horse of the Meet.
On the track, Déjà vu Blue, driven by Tim Tetrick, bested arch-rival Star Sapphire (Russell Foster) by a head to win the sophomore filly trotter event. Vandalous (Callahan) was third.
Super Fly overpowered seven rivals in 1:55.2 to win the $100,000 male trot with Art Stafford Jr. in the bike. Bother Kenny (Tetrick) was runner-up with Seafood Suzie Blue (Jason Green) third.
Go Sandy Go, with Jason Green driving, lowered her lifetime fastest mark to 1:53.2 romping to victory in the DSBF $100,000 filly pace.—Gracefullyforgiven, with Art Stafford Jr., was second in front of Studio Session (Sean Bier) third.
Slick Tony, owned by breeder George Leager and piloted by Russell Foster, took home the soph colt and gelding pace $100,000 championship with a 1:53.4 performance. Transitioning Joy (Teague), and Evolutiion Tour (Tetrick) were second and third.
Major Uptrend with Tony Morgan, paced his fourth sub-1:50 mile of the meet scoring a 1:49.2 triumph in the $35,000 Preferred/Handicap, the top race on the regular card. Sicily (Montrell Teague) was next with Super Imposed N (Callahan) third.
One race earlier, Art Stafford Jr. guided Blazing Bobby Sox home in 1:49.2 to win a $16,000 Winners-Over pace. Forty Five Red (Mike Cole) and Cajon Lightning (Stafford Jr.) were second and third respectively.
Art Of Fire made it five wins in a row in an $18,000 Conditioned pace. Jonathan Roberts drove the winner for trainer Kevin Lare, and breeder-owner Forest Bartlett ash Is King (Callahan) was next. Wichita Lineman (Allan Davis) was third
Jet Airway (Callahan) also kept a streak going, notching his fourth straight, a 1:51.1 winner in a $25,000-$30,000 Claiming Handicap.The other high-price claiming pace was won by Im Supersonic A (Sean Bier), who fashioned a 1:50.2 triumph in another top claimng pace.
Art Stafford Jr. had a triple, Tim Tetrick, Sean Bier and Tony Morgan had driving doubles.
The Delaware Standardbred Breeders Fund (DSBF) 3-year-old trotting and pacing stakes program completed two preliminary weeks of $20,000 sophomore legs of trotting and filly events during the week- The top eight-point getters in each of the four sophomore divisions returned for $100,000 championship finals
Sicily won the close vote of the Delaware Valley chapter, U.S. Harness Writers Association Horse of the Meet for Horse of the Meet honors. Major Uptrend, trotter Theresademoninme, Major Uptrend and Cyclone Kiwi N were next in the balloting. Red -hot Tim Tetrick, a former track champion, overtook seven-time defending champion Corey Callahan, for the Leading Driver title and for the fifth consecutive season Dylon Davis is Leading Trainer.
DURING THE WEEK: Tim Tetrick drove five winners while Very Dark won the feature trot and Ballinrobe, the top Pace on Monday (March 26)
Ross Wolfenden was in the bike to steer Very Dark to his second win-in-a-row to win the $12,000 Winners trot in 1:57.
The outside post was no concern to Vic Kirby who left fast and chalked up his fourth win of 2017 for new owner Don Fowler who claimed the gelding last week. The 1:51.4 victory came in a $15,000-$17,500 Claiming pace.
Tim Tetrick started his 5-win day taking both ends of the daily double. Driver Tony Morgan, trainers Josh Green and Brian Malone had two wins each.
On Tuesday (3/26) Tim Tetrick won five races for the second straight day while on Theresademoninme won the $30,000 Open/Handicap trot for the third straight week
Theresademoninme rolled out of post 7 to snatch the early lead and was never headed in a 1:53.2 victory, his third straight and fifth in the last seven feature trots at the track with Jonathan Roberts driving. Rock Of Cashel (Corey Callahan) closed with a rush to finish second while Gural Hanover (Tony Morgan) in his second race of the year, finished third in the feature.
After winning the daily double again and the first three races, Tetrick steered breeder Delbert Cain and Nanticoke Racing's Howard Taylor and Rich Lombardo's Holiday Promise notched a 1:55 score in a $15,000 Winners trot, his second straight win.
In addition to Tim Tetrick's five bagger, Tony Morgan and Corey Callahan had doubles.
Terror At Night caught front-pacing Nerida Franco N in the final stride to win the last $30,000 Mares Open/Handicap feature of the meet on Wednesday, March 28. Driver Mike Cole pulled Terror At Night out of third and followed Apple Bottom Jeans on the outside before moving three wide turning for home. The 5-year-old hustled down the lane just in time to catch Nerida Franco N (Allan Davis) in the 1:50.4 event. Divas Image (Tetrick) closed strongly to finish third.
Stormtracker (Tetrick) made good use of post 1 scoring a front-end 1:52 triumph in a $22,000 conditioned pace. Shesarocker (Vic Kirby) was the place finisher with Legio X Equestris (Montrell Teague) third.
Use Your Noodle, trained by Les Givens, was at the top of her game notching a 1:51.1 wire-to-wire conquest in a $16,000 Mares Winners-Over pace.—Tetrick guided Snappy Dresser, conditioned by Josh Green, to victory in a $15,000 female pace, giving her a third win in her last four efforts.
Two drivers had triples, Tony Morgan and Tim Tetrick, who had five wins the first two nights of the week added a three-bagger, Art Stafford Jr. had a double as did trainer Les Givens and Nanticoke Racing Inc. and Jeff Fout, a former standout driver in Ohio, won both ends of the daily double for owners Bay Pond Stable.
Tim Tetrick, with a strong March finish upended seven-time defending champion Corey Callahan in dash-winning drives. Tetrick won 143 wins. Callahan had three wins, and totals 136 wins Tony Morgan is third with 116 wins. Vic Kirby is fourth with 82 and Art Stafford Jr., is fifth, with 76 wins.
Defending champion Dylan Davis top the trainer standing with 44 wins, Josh Green is second with 36 wins, Wayne Givens, third, 33 winners. Jim King is fourth with 32 wins. Nick Callahan and Brian Malone are tied for fifth place with 28 winners.
Following the upcoming Harrington Raceway meet, Dover Downs harness resumes next Fall.
Marv Bachrad