Hoosier: Jim Campbell bringing strong group for Friday stakes

Hoosier Park hosts a major night of stakes action on Friday night and trainer Jim Campbell will be a force with three from his star-studded stable seeing action on the 14-race program. Returning to action after a three week layoff is Crystal Fashion, who landed post seven in the $230,000 Caesars Trotting Classic.

“We planned on giving him three weeks off after the Maple Leaf Trot,” said Campbell of Crystal Fashion. “He’s a 4-year-old and it’s a long season. He’s raced well with three weeks off in the past and I expect him to race well on Friday.”

Crystal Fashion had a three-race winning streak broken in the Maple Leaf Trot final but prior to that the son of Cantab Hall showed his grit and toughness taking down the Hambletonian Maturity and Cashman Memorial at The Meadowlands. Following a victory in an elimination for the Maple Leaf Trot at Woodbine Mohawk Park, Crystal Fashion came up short after a long uncovered grind and finished fourth in the final.

Crystal Fashion will face many of the same faces he’s had success against this year with Guardian Angel As, the Maple Leaf winner, among the nine rivals. Guardian Angel As has won seven times this year in 11 tries and could be set for a quality trip having drawn post 10 in the second tier at Hoosier for Friday’s contest.

The talent-laden Caesars Trotting Classic field finds Marion Marauder looking for his first victory of the season from the rail. The 2016 Triple Crown winner appears to be getting closer to finding his winning form with big efforts in both Maple Leaf eliminations and final in August.

While trainer Ron Burke preps Atlanta for the International Trot he’ll send out stablemates Hannelore Hanover (post 8) and Mission Accepted (post 6) in the “Caesars.” Hannelore Hanover will go over the $3 million mark in earnings with a top five finish on Friday.

Campbell will kick off his night in race five, the $230,000 Kentuckiana Stallion Management event for 2-year-old pacing fillies, with Beyond Ecstasy. “She’s a very nice filly,” said Campbell. “She didn’t get a very good trip in the Pennsylvania Sire Stakes championship.”

Beyond Ecstasy drew post nine against a quality field but Campbell believes she’s in a good spot to succeed. “There were four or five top fillies in the Sire Stakes that she had to race against and she did well,” said Campbell, who hands the lines to Tim Tetrick for this assignment. Beyond Ecstasy has won three of six races this season with earnings over $121K.

There will be some familiar faces for Beyond Ecstasy with Pennsylvania Sire Stakes finalist Shouldabeenatd (post 2) and Sweet Ace (post 8) among three from the Burke stable in contention. Merga Hanover had been dominant for Burke in the New York Sire Stakes until last Saturday’s final when she had a difficult time gaining into contention in a swift final half. Merga Hanover drew post five.

Campbell will send out another Pennsylvania Sire Stakes finalist in Sherry Lyns Lady (post 5) in the eighth race, the 2-year-old trotting filly division of the Kentuckiana Stallion Management stake. From the second crop of Father Patrick, Sherry Lyns Lady hopes to bounce back from a fourth-place finish behind the unbeaten Sister Sledge on September 8. “She had a perfect trip,” said Campbell of the Sire Stakes final. “She didn’t finish well and when we scoped her she was sick.” Sherry Lyns Lady trained back on Monday and Campbell is hoping to see a different version of the filly on Friday. “She’s been very consistent the entire season. If you look back I think her best race was the second-place finish in the Doherty Memorial.” Sherry Lyns Lady came from far back to finish just two lengths off division leader Hypnotic Am in the Doherty at The Meadowlands on August 3.

Sorella, a solid second in the Pennsylvania Sire Stakes championship for trainer Staffan Lind, landed the pole position on Friday. A daughter of Muscle Hill, Sorella has finished first or second in four of her six career starts.

Ohio Sire Stakes champkon Kikimora (post 8) makes her first Grand Circuit appearance following her impressive 1:57 victory on September 1 at Northfield Park.

Campbell noted that the undefeated 2-year-old Real Cool Sam is preparing to race once during the Lexington Red Mile Grand Circuit meet and then head north for the Breeders Crown. “I don’t want him to race more than he has to,” said Campbell of the Peter Haughton Memorial champion.

Post time at Hoosier is 6:30 PM for the 14-race card which also features the $176,000 Hoosier Pacing Derby, $170,000 Jenna’s Beach Boy, $135,000 Moni Maker and $125,000 Elevation stakes.