Though his top 2-year-old pacers landed on the extreme outside of the starting gate, the sport's leading trainer Ron Burke didn't sound that downcast speaking about his stable's chances in Saturday's $357,000 G1 Three Diamonds and $334,000 G1 Governor's Cup at the Meadowlands. Perhaps the key reason was the presence of Breeders Crown champion Loua Dipa in the Three Diamonds and the impeccably-bred Ubrute in the Governor's Cup. "Post ten shouldn't be a problem for her," said Burke of Loua Dipa, a homebred daughter of Sweet Lou that has won nine of her 12 starts this year and has imposed her will on the division with apparently only stablemates threatening her reign atop the division. Driver Ronnie Wrenn Jr. has calmly utilized her talents, racing from both on- and off-the-pace with the same effectiveness. "She was just ok training down," said Burke of the filly. "Then when it came time to qualifying, she showed something else." That something has made her into a world champion, with Saturday's contest wrapping up a campaign that also saw her capture the She's A Great Lady in commanding style. With three other fillies in the Three Diamonds final (race eight), Burke's lone concern for a challenge to Loua Dipa's supremacy comes from She's A Bulldog. The runner-up in the Breeders Crown from the first crop of Bulldog Hanover has had a different arc to her season than others from the stable but has never been better than her recent form. "Training down we thought she was our best filly," said Burke of She's A Bulldog. "Things just didn't work out for her, so we gave her a break and brought her back. I had one of my assistants drive her in a qualifier (at The Meadows on September 30). She paced in 1:54, and he thought she could have gone in 1:52." She's A Bulldog reached the Ontario Sire Stakes Final essentially because not enough horses entered and put in a huge mile finishing second, caught behind another Burke-trained filly that couldn't keep pace. Though Loua Dipa dominated in the Breeders Crown, She's A Bulldog was a strong second. "It's hard to believe that she's still a maiden," said Burke of the homebred that has banked more than $200K. Seaside Shuffle (post four) and I'm A Lou Lou (post eight) have enjoyed solid seasons of their own, with Burke pointing out one change to I'm A Lou Lou for this start. "We've added Lasix for her, and I think it will make a big difference," said Burke of the filly that was recently a close second in the Matron after a brutal journey. ► Sign up for our FREE DRF Harness Digest Newsletter In the Governor's Cup (race nine) Burke believes Ubrute may be ready to shine. "I think the big track will help him a lot," said Burke of the son of Tall Dark Stranger and Warrawee Ubeaut. "He's been racing well and got parked in a race with Beau Jangles on the lead, and that didn't work out." Ubrute has already captured the $400,000 Kentucky Championship Series final at The Red Mile this year in a 1:49 4/5 mile, defeating some of the top 2-year-old colts in the country. While the outside draw may not be great, driver Yannick Gingras will certainly make sure the colt gets a trip closer to the action despite starting from post 10. Melillo is yet another Sweet Lou-sired homebred that has raced with distinction this year for the stable. Third to Beau Jangles in the $700,000 Breeders Crown final at Woodbine Mohawk Park on October 24, Melillo faded to fourth in the Matron Stakes at Dover Downs on November 6, but his trainer was not overly concerned with the result. "The track at Dover is usually speed-favoring, but on that night it just wasn't for any of my horses," said Burke. Ever the astute race-watcher, Burke is concerned about a horse that did race well in the Matron that he will have to deal with in the Governor's Cup. "I thought Fragment raced really well at Dover," said Burke of the Matron champion that will be making his 16th start of the year for trainer Per Engblom and somehow looks as fresh and ready now in November. Fragment, a son of Huntsville (second in the 2016 Governor's Cup) has won nine times this year, following up a New York Sire Stakes championship season with a victory in the $250,000 Big Apple Pace at Vernon Downs on October 11. Fragment starts from post four on Saturday. It's been a fabulous season for Lexus Kody. The $1 million MGM Yonkers International Trot champion has maintained his form into November and enters Saturday's $350,000 G1 FanDuel Championship (race 10) hoping to add to his $1,151,401 seasonal bankroll and perhaps make his last case for Trotter and Horse of the Year titles. Lexus Kody drew post six, and that suits his trainer well. "I think it's a perfect spot for him and Yannick (Gingras) can do whatever he wants," said Burke of his outlook for Lexus Kody. "The trip just didn't work out in the Breeders Crown, but he still raced well." Lexus Kody was parked without cover most of the way in the Breeders Crown, but that trip helped rivals French Wine (the race winner) and Periculum get the cover they needed, and only those two passed him in the homestretch. That rivalry will be renewed on Saturday, with Periculum (post four) landing inside of Lexus Kody and French Wine (post eight) to his outside. In addition to his International Trot wire-to-wire victory going 1 1/4 miles at Yonkers, Lexus Kody has also captured the Maple Leaf Trot at Woodbine Mohawk Park, the Caesars Trotting Classic at Harrah's Hoosier Park, as well as the Dayton Trotting Derby during his explosive second half of the stakes season. Breeders Crown champion French Wine enters the FanDuel final following a personal-best 1:50 1/5 effort in the $600,000 Breeders Crown on October 25. The 5-year-old by Bar Hopping was making just his fourth start since joining the Nancy Takter stable and has shown improvement with each race. Logan Park and Hillexotic have both been hampered by poor draws in many of the recent stakes but find themselves in good spots on Saturday. Logan Park (post two) drew post eight for the Breeders Crown final and post 10 in the elimination. Hillexotic (post three) had to start from post nine in the Crown final after he drew post seven for the elimination. The Meadowlands' 14-race card starts at 6:20 P.M. (EST) and includes eight stakes races in total worth $2.6 million.