Meadowlands: Post ten proves no issue for Karl In his Kindergarten Series final

Breeders Crown champion Karl overcame post ten with little issue and went on to an authoritative 1:53 2/5 win in the $267,500 Kindergarten Series final for rookie trotting colts and geldings on Saturday night at the Meadowlands.

Driver Yannick Gingras showed some speed with Karl at the outset, but there were several leavers to his inside. Fortunately for Karl, things sorted out relatively quickly, with Tony Adams S (Dexter Dunn) getting to the point and then yielding to fellow Ake Svanstedt trainee Flying Kronos S (Svanstedt drove) at the 28 1/5 opening quarter. That left Karl two-wide and uncovered, but he pressed forward and cleared Flying Kronos S with about five-eighths of the mile to go.

With none of the horses on the outside able to reach his wheel, Gingras was able to get to the half in a well-rated 57 3/5 and didn't have to pick up the tempo around the final bend, either, with three-quarters up in 1:26 4/5. The sprint to the finish line was set from there, and Karl blitzed home in 26 3/5 to widen and score by 3 1/4 lengths over Flying Kronos S. Tony Adams S wound up third from Bright Star (Scott Zeron) and Winter Soldier (Andy McCarthy).

"He's such a professional. Obviously you don't want the ten-hole, anything can happen with a 2-year-old, but he handled it perfectly," said winning trainer Nancy Takter. "He was well in-hand. He got very relaxed on the front, and I think Yannick can probably pretty much do whatever he wants with him. He's very smart. He doesn't waste any of his energy, and he never fusses about anything. He warms up nice and he's quiet in the paddock. Since the first time he trained up here, he's just been push-button and perfect."

When asked by Dave Little from the Meadowlands whether she thought Karl could better the season that top 3-year-old Tactical Approach from her barn is having, Takter responded, "He has to get through the winter and everything like that, but they are very different horses. Tactical Approach was very immature as a 2-year-old, very big and not strong enough for his body, whereas Karl is more of a refined racehorse and able to carry his speed already at 2."

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After the Breeders Crown, it appeared that Karl was heading to the sidelines for the remainder of 2023, but Takter detailed what caused her to enter him tonight and keep him in training for the Valley Victory at the Meadowlands later this month.

"It's a marquee race for 2-year-olds, and it has a nice purse to it. That doesn't suck," she offered about the Valley Victory. "Originally we hadn't really planned to race him any more after the Breeders Crown, but when I jogged him on Monday morning, he was fresh as a daisy and felt so good that the decision was made to give him a shot. Luckily he got into the Kindergarten; he was the tenth horse to draw in. It helps that the winner of the Kindergarten does draw right into the Valley Victory final, so that definitely had its plus, and I'm just happy with him."

Nancy Takter also co-owns Karl, a Tactical Landing colt, with her mother Christina and their partners Black Horse Racing, breeder Crawford Farms and Bender Sweden Inc. He has earned $843,510 to go with his 8-1-0 mark in nine outings and returned $2.10 to win as the 1-9 favorite.