Harness racing: Check Me Out and Maven hook up in Bluegrass at The Red Mile

While the Hambletonian and Oaks are long gone, many of the hopefuls from that first Saturday in August remain in search of the glory they hoped to achieve. These 3-year-old trotters converge in Lexington on Sunday for Bluegrass action at The Red Mile.

The marquee event is the fourth meeting between fillies Check Me Out and Maven. Hyped to be a great matchup in the Hambletonian Oaks, the battle never materialized as Check Me Out broke and caused Maven to fall victim to the same fate. Check Me Out leads the head-to-head battle 2 to 1 and defeated Maven by 1 ¼ lengths on September 1st at Mohegan Sun Pocono Downs.

Slated as race 11 on the 13-race card, Maven will leave from post 4 with regular driver Yannick Gingras in the bike. The pair came up three-quarters of a length shy in the Buckette at the Delaware County Fair after chasing the loose-on-the-lead Bluff.

Check Me Out, the sport’s top horse according to the Hambletonian Society/Breeders Crown poll, will head to the gate from post five with Tim Tetrick at the controls for trainer Ray Schnittker. The daughter of Donato Hanover has reeled off four straight wins since her Hambletonian miscue and has shown few signs of weakness.

The first of three divisions of the filly Bluegrass features the aforementioned Bluff. The speedy Ron Burke trainee has a ton of speed but has yet to bring a consistent effort to the track.

“She a wonderfully talented horse,” said Burke. “If we could ever straighten her out there is nothing she is not capable of.”

Bluff figures to take on the role of favorite against five contenders, including On The Bright Side, who was a disappointing eighth in the Duenna on Hambletonian Day.

On the colt side, perhaps no trotter is in search of an elusive stakes win more than Hambletonian runner-up Guccio. After losing the Hambletonian by only a neck despite traffic trouble, Guccio has finished no better than third. However, he added trotting hobbles prior to his last two starts and displayed a new dimension by leaving off the gate in the $1,000,000 Canadian Trotting Classic final.

Guccio starts from the rail on Saturday against a field of six, the first of three Bluegrass divisions. Trainer/driver Jimmy Takter is listed to drive the probable public choice.

Takter will also send out the likely favorite in the second colt split. Little Brown Fox never even made it to the Hambletonian final after a rare break in his elimination derailed his chances. He will start from post seven against Hambletonian finalists Money On My Mind and Gym Tan Laundry.

As an added treat to the Bluegrass action, the best trotter in North America right now, Chapter Seven, is slated to take on one of the best trotters over recent years, Arch Madness, in an Open Handicap event.

Post time for Sunday’s Red Mile card is 1:00 pm.