Harrah's Philadelphia: Abuckabett Hanover, Southwind Gendry win in PaSS action

Sophomore pacing colts and geldings met up in a pair of Pennsylvania Sire Stakes divisions on Sunday afternoon at Harrah's Philadelphia, and Abuckabett Hanover and Southwind Gendry would emerge victorious.

The first $76,329 tilt was supposed to be a rematch between Abuckabett Hanover and Perfect Sting after they finished first and second against each other at Pocono on May 16, but Perfect Sting came up sick and was scratched.

"He had a temperature on Friday, but it is down now," trainer Joe Holloway said about Perfect Sting. "It's a long year, and I believe in my horse."

Without his main rival in the field, Abuckabett Hanover (Andrew McCarthy) was hammered down to 1-5 in the wagering, and he didn't disappoint, charging into the lead from first-over on the last turn and going on to win by three lengths in 1:51 1/5. Gamblin Mo (Tyler Buter) was second after following Abuckabett Hanover's cover, and Red Right Hand (Todd McCarthy) finished third.

"I kicked the plugs out on the final turn just to shake him up, and he took off. He was awesome," said McCarthy, who was able to compete on the card after being involved in an accident at the Meadowlands last night.

Tony Alagna trains Abuckabett Hanover, a Betting Line colt, for owners Crawford Farms Racing, Alagna Racing LLC., Jablonsky Held Stable, and Barbera N Wienick Stable. Abuckabett Hanover picked up his seventh win from 15 starts, and he has now earned $235,021. Abuckabett Hanover paid $2.40 to win.

"Sure, it was easier on us that he wasn't here, but we'll have to face him eventually," Alagna said about missing out on locking horns with Perfect Sting again.

In the second $76,729 section, Southwind Gendry (Yannick Gingras) made front and was well-rated through opening-half fractions of 27 4/5 and 56 4/5, which gave him plenty left in the tank to deal with a first-over try from 3-5 favorite One Eight Hundred (Tim Tetrick) to the 1:23 4/5 three-quarters and around the last turn. After dispatching One Eight Hundred's bid, Southwind Gendry opened up on the competition in the lane, tallying by three lengths in a 1:51 effort. Hellabalou (A. McCarthy) was second from the pocket, and Billy Clyde (Mark MacDonald) collected third.

"I thought he was good. I don't think he's nearly 100 percent still yet. We've got to get to the bottom of it, but he's just a classy horse," stated Gingras. "It was a good mile, but he's a much better horse than this.

"I think he'll be better on a mile track because he's way better following. That's part of the problem. He's really lazy on the front and he just waits on them a little bit. On a mile track you can maybe race him from behind and he'll be better that way."

Southwind Gendry is an Always B Miki gelding and is trained by Ron Burke for owners Burke Racing Stable LLC., Phil Collura, Knox Services Inc., and J&T Silva- Purnel & Libby. Southwind Gendry has a record of 12-1-1 from 16 appearances, and he has now banked $672,758. He was the 3-2 second choice and returned $5.00 to win.