ANDERSON, Ind.-October 30, 2015 – Freaky Feet Pete returned to his home state of Indiana and turned in another dominating performance to score his fourth consecutive victory, this time thrilling his hometown crowd in 1:49.3 in the $285,500 Monument Circle Pace at Hoosier Park Racing & Casino on Friday, October 30. Driven by regular pilot Trace Tetrick, Freaky Feet Pete used a pocket trip to his advantage to best harness racing's top-rated horse, Wiggle It Jiggleit, late in the lane to win by a length and a quarter.
With the win, Freaky Feet Pete became the sport's newest millionaire as he pushed his lifetime earnings passed the $1 million mark and notch his 23rd lifetime victory from 26 starts. Freaky Feet Pete returned to Hoosier Park fresh off a stretch rallying victory as the post time favorite to become the first-ever Indiana sired horse to capture the $531,250 Breeders Crown three-year-old male pacing event at Woodbine on October 24.
As the wings of the gate folded, Montrell Teague had the post-time favorite Wiggle It Jiggleit pointed to the front from the rail and Freaky Feet Pete left just enough from post three to grab a pocket seat. With Wiggle It Jiggleit dictating the fractions the race was shaping up to be a repeat of the last time these two superstars met in Indiana Sires Stakes action earlier in the season with Freaky Feet Pete earning the victory.
Wiggle It Jiggleit dictated fractions of :26.3, :55.1 and 1:23.2 and as the field turned for home the stage was set once again for an epic battle to the wire. Tetrick tipped Freaky Feet Pete to the outside but Wiggle It Jiggleit wasn't giving it up easily. Using a :26 final quarter, Freaky Feet Pete saved his best for last to find the wire first.
"I got the trip I wanted or probably the trip I needed," Tetrick noted in the winner's circle. "It's hard to come from off the pace especially against a horse like that (Wiggle It Jiggleit). Those are two great horses out there."
"I knew Montrell's horse was sharp tonight," he continued. "It took mine a little while to get in full-tilt, a little while to get by him but he paced that last eighth of the mile hard, all the way to the wire. He loves his job and loves to go fast."
The son of Rockin Image and Pilgrim's Punch mare Skyway Lori is trained by Larry Rheinheimer and owned by Mary Jo and Marty Rheinheimer. Freaky Feet Pete paid $4.00 to win as the public's second choice. Wiggle It Jiggleit paid $2.20 to show and My Hero Ron provided $3.80 to his supporters for his third place finish.
"We are on top of the world," Larry Rheinheimer noted in the winner's circle. "We were a little concerned bringing him back 6 days later but we wanted to bring him back here to Hoosier Park. This whole experience with him has been a lot of fun, something I never imagined."
The match-up between Wiggle It Jiggleit and Freaky Feet Pete was the pinnacle of a stakes-filled 14-race card at Hoosier Park with purses distributed throughout the evening over the $1 million mark. Just one race earlier, harness racing's richest Standardbred ever, Foiled Again turned in a gritty performance to take the $165,000 Hoosier Park Pacing Derby. With regular pilot Yannick Gingras at the controls, Foiled Again dictated fractions of :27.3, :56.1 and 1:24 before he began to feel pressure from the rest of the field. Using a :26.3 fought off JK Endofanera and Brett Miller along with stablemate All Bets Off and Matt Kakaley to find the wire first.
"I love the rail, I wanted to control the race," Gingras noted in the winner's circle. "He's as tough as they come and he usually tells you about the 5/8 how he feels and tonight, he felt good. He swelled up and when he does that, he's usually tough to pass."
Trained by Ron Burke, Foiled Again notched his third victory from 20 seasonal outings and 86th lifetime win from 244 starts. Owned by Burke Racing Stable, Weaver Bruscemi, and the JJK Stables, the 11-year-old gelding has now earned $379,132 for the season and over $7.2 million lifetime.
Devil Child and Tim Tetrick kicked-off the stakes action for the evening in a big kind of way in the $101,000 USS Indianapolis Memorial Pace for three-year-old pacing fillies. With a final time of 1:50.3, Devil Child scored her second consecutive victory and re-established a seventeen year-old track record at Hoosier Park with the win. The previous mark of 1:50.4 was established by Galleria and George Brennan in 1998.
Trained by Chris Oakes, Devil Child sat patiently along the rail in third through fractions of :26.4, :55.2, and 1:23 before angling out for racing room turning for home. Recording a :27 final quarter, the daughter of American Ideal-Kattimon coasted to the wire three-lengths in front of the pace-setting Sassa Hanover and Matt Kakaley. Devil Child recorded her sixth seasonal win from 20 outings for owners Susan Oakes and Crawford Farms, LLC.
On the trotting side of the stakes action, Muscle Baby Doll turned in another impressive performance to score her second consecutive victory at Hoosier Park, tonight in the $140,000 Crossroads of America Stakes for three-year-old trotting fillies. After scoring in a track-record setting time of 1:53.1 in stakes action last week, Muscle Baby Doll dug in gamely late in the lane to hold off Bright Baby Blues to get the win for driver David Miller in 1:54.2.
Owned by F. Bellino & Sons, LLC, the daughter of Muscle Mass-Have You Ever notched her 10th victory of the season from 14 starts. Muscle Baby Doll has now amassed $457,720 lifetime.
In the very next division, Crazy Wow and Tim Tetrick pulled the slight 6-1 upset in the $270,000 Carl Erksine Trot for three-year-old colt and gelding trotters scoring in 1:54. The 2015 Hambletonian winning Pinkman was heavily favored at the betting windows and dictated early fractions of :27.2, :57, and 1:25.3 before succumbing to the long Hoosier Park stretch. Tetrick had Crazy Wow well placed turning for home and the three-year-old colt did the rest.
It was the eighth win of the season for the son of Crazed-No Pan No Gan who is trained by Ron Burke and also the fourth win of the night for Tetrick. Owned by Our Horse Cents Stable, JT45, J&T Silva Stable and Deo Volente Farms, Crazy Wow has now earned $905,837 this season.
For more information on the upcoming live racing and entertainment at Hoosier Park, please visit www.hoosierpark.com. The live racing schedule at Hoosier Park will follow a Tuesday through Saturday schedule and be conducted through November 14.
Emily Gaskin