Dover: Matron hopeful Mysweetboymax holds special place in owners' hearts

When colt Mysweetboymax races in Thursday's $193,000 Matron Stakes for 2-year-old male pacers at Dover Downs, he carries not only his owners' hopes for a win but their memories of a dear friend.

Bred and owned by the father-and-son team of Robert Horowitz and Brandon Horowitz, Mysweetboymax is named in memory of Max Liroff, the best friend of one of Robert's other sons, Casey. Max died two years ago at the age of 25 following a battle with cancer.

"He fought the battle like none other but was just dealt a terrible blow," Robert Horowitz said. "He was the sweetest, nicest kid in the world. I knew him from the day he wore diapers. He was a wonderful person. When it came time to name this horse, this was something we wanted to do."

Mysweetboymax, by Sweet Lou out of Faster Faster, has won three of 10 races this season and hit the board a total of six times. In July, he finished in a dead heat for win with eventual undefeated Breeders Crown champion Perfect Sting. In his most recent starts, both at Harrah's Philadelphia, Mysweetboymax won a division of the Liberty Bell and was second in a division of the Simpson Memorial.

"He was a little immature and we kind of brought him along slowly," Horowitz said. "He's been getting better every week. We felt like this would be an opportunity for him. You never know. You have to be in it to win it."

Mysweetboymax will start Thursday's Matron from post six and is 12-1 on the morning line. The colt is trained by Sam DePinto.

"He's very handy, he makes no mistakes, and he loves his job," Horowitz said about Mysweetboymax.

"The horse just loves what he does. He shows up and tries every week. He can race any way he has to. He's a pushbutton horse to drive. He can leave, come off the pace; that kind of horse is nice as a 2-year-old.

"This is a very competitive race, but we feel like he's in a good spot and will give a good account of himself. He's never disappointed."

Southwind Gendry, the Pennsylvania Sire Stakes champion who is coming off a third-place finish by a head in the Breeders Crown, is the 5-2 favorite in the Matron for colt-and-gelding pacers. The field also includes Metro Pace winner Exploit and Breeders Crown finalists Bayfield Beach and Literl Lad Hanover.

There also are Matron Stakes for 2-year-old male trotters and 2-year-old female pacers and trotters. Massachusetts Sire Stakes champion Incommunicado is the 3-5 favorite in the colt-and-gelding trot, Bluegrass division winner Pub Crawl is the 5-2 choice in the filly trot, and Breeders Crown finalist Continualou is the 2-1 favorite in the filly pace.

Racing begins at 4:30 p.m. (EST) Thursday at Dover Downs.

-Courtesy USTA Communications