Meadowlands: Super Chapter out-duels Lexus Kody in John Cashman Memorial
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Super Chapter and Lexus Kody hooked up in a stride-for-stride duel down the stretch of Saturday’s $281,200 John Cashman Memorial, with Super Chapter getting his head in front in the final strides to win the Grade 1 event for older trotters in 1:50 1/5 at the Meadowlands.
Up Your Deo finished third, 2 3/4 lengths behind Super Chapter.
Hillexotic took the lead on the first turn, but driver Yannick Gingras pushed forward with Lexus Kody to take command at the 27 3/5 opening quarter. The field remained lined up behind the leader, with Hillexotic second and Super Chapter third, on the way to the half in 55 1/5. Driver Dexter Dunn bided his time until the final turn before making a charge with Super Chapter, drawing alongside Lexus Kody at three-quarters in 1:23.
From there, the two Dan Patch Award winners locked up in an epic battle before Super Chapter’s late surge provided his winning margin over the 2025 Trotter of Year.
"I thought about moving to the front after the quarter, but Lexus Kody came on pretty good and I thought it was a battle we didn't need to get in to," Dunn said. "Once I moved in the last turn, (Super Chapter) moved with authority.
"That's what makes this horse such a champion; you can do whatever you want. He's just so classy; he's one of my favorite horses to sit behind. He's an absolute dude."
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Super Chapter, who was a divisional Dan Patch Award winner at 3 last year, has won 17 of 30 career races and hit the board an additional 10 times for trainer Marcus Melander. The son of Chapter Seven-Lifetime Pursuit, bred by Hanover Shoe Farms, has earned $2.08 million lifetime. He is owned by Jeff Snyder, Arthur Pronti, and Hanover Shoe Farms.
"It's great to have him back as a 4-year-old," Dunn said. "I was pretty happy when they said they were bringing him back. He never puts in a bad performance. You can always count on him."
Super Chapter has three wins and two seconds in five races this year. His previous four starts all came against 4-year-olds.
"This is the first time he's raced against older horses, and he came through for us," Snyder said. "He's been a very special horse from day one. We’re excited."
Sent off as the 4-5 favorite, Super Chapter paid $3.60 to win.