Harness: Catch Driver Battle of the Decade reaches Breeders Crown

We can only dream about what may have occurred if some of the great Standardbreds of all-time met on the track. Certainly comparing horses of different generations is an impossible task. But what about the best of the previous decade? That is the basis for the Battle of the Decade Challenge that concludes on Friday, May 15 at the virtual Hoosier Park on the Catch Driver racing app.

A total of 19 of the best male pacers from 2010-19 were chosen to compete in five preliminary legs at various racetracks, including half-mile, five-eighths, seven-eighths and mile tracks. The top nine winners throughout the series return on Friday to settle the score on who is the best of the best.

Through 3,489 races, the real-life all-time leader in earnings, Foiled Again, has set the pace by accumulating 511 wins along with a 23% success rate. While he sits atop the hill, Always B Miki is a close second just 44 wins behind and sporting a solid 22% winning percentage. Also hot on the heels of the top pair are Wiggle It Jiggleit and Sweet Lou at 19%. Rounding out the all-star field slated for the 10 AM E.D.T. start time for the 24-hour Catch Driver showdown are Lather Up and Won The West (16%), McWicked (15%), Captaintreacherous (13%) and Bit Of A Legend N (10%).

The road to the Breeders Crown final between the decade’s best went through Saratoga, Mohawk and Scioto last weekend. The Gerrity Memorial led off the action with Foiled Again just edging out Wiggle It Jiggleit in wins 186 to 175. That pair also tied for the fastest final time at 1:50 1/5, with Foiled Again doing in three times to once for Wiggle It Jiggleit. Clifton Bell led all drivers with 33 wins from 149 starts.

Horse	Wins	Win %	Avg. Post
Foiled Again	186	26.80%	4.5202
Wiggle It Jiggleit	175	25.22%	4.3876
Won The West	91	13.11%	4.5692
Bit Of A Legend N	90	12.97%	4.5692
Pet Rock	75	10.81%	4.464
All Bets Off	32	4.61%	4.4798
Dorsoduro Hanover	31	4.47%	4.513
Jimmy Freight	14	2.02%	4.4971

With the switch to the bigger track at Mohawk for the Canadian Pacing Derby, Always B Miki flexed his muscles by winning 28% of his races, well ahead of Sweet Lou in second at 20%. Playing true-to-life, Always B Miki was the fastest winner in the event with a 1:47 1/5 winning mark. There was a tie at the top of the driver standings with Clifton Bell and Manine Doro picking up 19 wins each.

Horse	Wins	Win %	Avg. Post
Always B Miki	180	27.91%	5.4868
Sweet Lou	130	20.16%	5.324
McWicked	122	18.91%	5.555
Lather Up	91	14.11%	5.7349
Captaintreacherous	73	11.32%	5.414
Rock N Roll Heaven	40	6.20%	5.4233
Betting Line	3	0.47%	5.5085
Bettors Wish	3	0.47%	5.4512
Courtly Choice	3	0.47%	5.4512
Freaky Feet Pete	0	0.00%	5.6512

Finally, in the Ewart Memorial over the five-eighths surface at Scioto Downs, Foiled Again won the narrowest of battles versus Always B Miki by a 132 to 130 margin. Sweet Lou, who had 92 wins, was the fastest horse in the event with a 1:50 final time. Rodrigo Rios led all driver with 28 wins.

Horse	Wins	Win %	Avg. Post
Foiled Again	132	17.98%	4.8992
Always B Miki	130	17.71%	5.1076
Wiggle It Jiggleit	105	14.31%	5.0014
McWicked	96	13.08%	5.0218
Sweet Lou	92	12.53%	5.0327
Lather Up	87	11.85%	5.0204
Captaintreacherous	54	7.36%	4.861
Rock N Roll Heaven	36	4.90%	4.9823
Downbytheseaside	2	0.27%	5.0736

For the series in total, below are the complete records of all horses:

Horse	Franklin	McKee	Gerrity	CPD	Ewart	Total Wins
Foiled Again	193		186		132	511
Always B Miki	157			180	130	467
Wiggle It Jiggleit	135		175		105	415
Sweet Lou		174		130	92	396
McWicked	106			122	96	324
Lather Up		144		91	87	322
Captaintreacherous		133		73	54	260
Won The West		128	91			219
Bit Of A Legend N	64		90			154
Rock N Roll Heaven	57			40	36	133
Pet Rock	52		75			127
All Bets Off		13	32			45
Dorsoduro Hanover	4		31			35
Betting Line		21		3		24
Bettors Wish		17		3		20
Jimmy Freight	4		14			18
Courtly Choice		11		3		14
Downbytheseaside		2			2	4
Freakly Feet Pete		1		0		1
Total Races	772	644	694	645	734	3489

Who will win the Battle of the Decade? Will Foiled Again prove best again or will Always B Miki rise to the occasion? Check out Catch Driver this weekend and drive a champion. Winners of every race get a set of in-game bike wheels and the top players overall will vie for an enhanced prize fund.