Harrah's Hoosier Park: Pacing males put on a show in Indiana Sires Stakes

Friday night featured fast pacing colts and geldings on the 14-race card at Harrah's Hoosier Park Racing & Casino. Two divisions of the freshmen, along with a single split for the 3-year-olds, highlighted the September 16 card as they competed in the penultimate leg of Sires Stakes action before the $250,000 Indiana Sires Stakes Super Finals on Friday, October 14 at Harrah's Hoosier Park.

Frankie Frankie and Atlee Bender would kick off the stakes action on the night, scoring a mild 7-1 upset in the $69,000 first flight for the rookies. Leaving from post four in the field of nine, Bender would guide Frankie Frankie into the fourth position off the wings of the gate as Hetolditlikeitwas and Peter Wrenn led the field through a 27 second opening quarter. Hetolditlikeitwas would be overtaken by Buzzsaw Russ and John De Long going to the half in 55 1/5, and he would continue to show the way through three-quarters in 1:232 2/5. At that point, Why Not Now and Lewayne Miller were stalled out first-over in third, and Frankie Frankie trailed the leaders by six lengths in sixth.

The stretch drive would prove to be a calvary charge to the wire. Bender navigated traffic with Frankie Frankie and fed him racetrack on the grandstand side, surging with a 26 3/5 final quarter to get up by three-quarters of a length at the wire over Why Not Now in 1:51 1/5. Henry The Horse and Jimmy Whittemore rallied up the rail to finish in the third position. Frankie Frankie retuned $17.20 to those who showed their support at the betting windows.

Owned by Rocco Ruffolo, Rick Howles and Bowie Racing LLC., it was the third win in eight career starts for the Erv Miller trainee. Bred by Victory Hill Farm, the gelded son of Tellitlikeitis, out of the Somebeachsomewhere mare Myplaceonthebeach, has now banked $79,292 in 2022.

The $68,500 second section of stakes action for the 2-year-olds would go as the 13th race on the evening, and Art It Is would return to his winning ways. Leaving from the six-hole in the field of eight, driver Sam Widger opted to put Art It Is in the middle of the pack as race favorite J B Gram and Trace Tetrick cut out a 27 3/5 opening quarter. J B Gram had things his way up the backstretch through a half of 56 seconds before Widger pulled the right line and sent Art It Is first-over towards the leader at three-quarters in 1:24 1/5.

With nothing between them at the top of the lane, Art It Is and J B Gram slugged it out the length of the Harrah's Hoosier Park stretch before Art It Is just edged by with a 26 4/5 final quarter to score by a half-length over J B Gram in 1:51 2/5. Strengthfromabove and De Long completed a Tellitlikeitis-sired trifecta.

Trained by Mark P'pool, Art It Is has now picked up three victories in six starts over the course of his rookie season. Bred by Legacy Acres, Art Is Is is out of the Indiana Sires Stakes-winning Dream Work mare JNB N Me. With the victory, Art It Is pushed his bankroll to $104,720 for owners Dolne Farm Services LLC., Therese Defabis and Mark P'pool.

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The richest race on the evening came in the $95,500 Indiana Sire Stakes tilt for the sophomores where Soaring Now and Joey Putnam scored with authority. Leaving from the middle of the gate in post four in the compact field of seven, Soaring Now got away fourth as Ponda Warrior and Whittemore went to the front in 26 4/5. Up the backstretch, Rip Wheeler and Brandon Bates popped the pocket to assume command before they got halfway home in 55 seconds. Soaring Now began his move on the final turn, still with four lengths to make up on leader Rip Wheeler as he led at the three-quarter pole in 1:22 4/5.

As the field turned for home, Soaring Now made quick work of that four length gap as he gobbled up ground in the stretch with a powerful 25 3/5 final quarter to get by Rip Wheeler and go on to a 2 1/2 length win in 1:49 1/5. Sure Thing Herman would get up for place, with Rip Wheeler and Bates finishing third.

It was the fourth win in ten starts in 2022 and lucky win career win number seven for Soaring Now. Owned by James Miller and trained by Aaron Stutzman, Soaring Now went over $200,000 on the season and now boasts a career bankroll beyond the quarter-million dollar mark with lifetime earnings of $258,840. Bred by Luckiana Farms, Soaring Now is by JK Endofanera and out of the Mach Three mare Sunflower.

Racing action continues Saturday night at Harrah's Hoosier Park with a 14-race card, this time featuring the 3-year-old pacing fillies to close out a week of Indiana Sires Stakes action. First post is 6:15 p.m.

--edited press release (Harrah's Hoosier Park)--