Harness racing has discovered a pot of riches in Kentucky over the last few years, and the first major pile of cash will be distributed in Sunday's quartet of $100,000 Kentucky Sire Stakes finals. The event for 4-year-olds of both sexes and gaits, scheduled for a 1:45 p.m. (CDT) start at Oak Grove, includes a good mix of strong state-bred horses, as well as potential Grand Circuit types. Looking to dominate on the trotting side on Sunday at Oak Grove is trainer Carter Pinske, who sends out a pair of top contenders - Woman Of Passion and Pizzelle - in race four and another - Convoy Hall - in the eighth and final Sire Stakes split. Woman Of Passion, the 7-5 morning-line favorite in the mare trotting division as she starts from post four with Todd McCarthy in the bike, has continued her good fortune at Oak Grove that she displayed as a 3-year-old. The daughter of Walner was perfect in four starts, including last year's $100,000 final in 2024, and after a narrow defeat in leg one this year, rolled to a seven length win in 1:53 on April 28. "She was very solid at 3, a bit up and down, but she's grown up from 2 to 3 the same amount as she has from 3 to 4. She has an excellent gait and just a great attitude," said Pinske. "Everything seems all systems go with her, and I think we'll have a solid year." Pinske got Woman Of Passion after her rookie season with trainer Matt Bax where she campaigned mostly in stakes events and exclusively in Canada. At that point, along with owner Al Libfeld, the decision was made to keep her mostly in Kentucky. "Not having her at 2, it is hard to really gauge what type of speed they really have," said Pinske, who has Woman Of Passion fully staked this year and hinted we will likely see her in at least one leg of the Graduate Series for 4-year-olds. "Bax thought maybe she would trot in 1:52 or 1:53 on a sunny day at The Red Mile and she surprised everybody. If I would've known she was going to trot in 1:50 1/5, she would've been staked, but maybe it will be a blessing in disguise." Pinske was referring to Woman Of Passion's Kentucky Sire Stakes preliminary leg victory over The Red Mile in 1:50 1/5 where she defeated eventual final winner Date Night Hanover. That foe is nowhere to be found in Sunday's race but perhaps stablemate Pizzelle, who Pinske got into the barn around February 1 this year, can make her presence felt. Pizzelle starts from post seven this weekend with David Miller in the bike. The Hall of Fame driver, who is also slated to drive on Sunday, steered her to be a distant second behind Woman Of Passion in her 2025 pari-mutual debut. "The idea is to race her in Kentucky and have a good 4-year-old year," said Pinske on Pizzelle, who won the Goldsmith Maid as a 2-year-old for trainer Noel Daley. "She's a very nice horse to be around. The idea [in her last race] was to get a check and make the final, and sometimes the plan goes accordingly. "I was really happy with her. David said she had lots of trot, probably more than I expected," continued Pinske. "I'm not totally sure she can be a top Grand Circuit horse, but the 4-year-old series at Oak Grove will be very good for her, and we can have a lot of fun with her in Kentucky." Another horse in the field to watch is Spy Coast from the Ron Burke barn. She won a leg of the Sire Stakes on April 21 in 1:54 1/5 but broke in the last leg. A number of horses have had issues with the track lately, but Pinske thought that could be behind them. "It was a little shaky getting going at Oak Grove, but they brought in an outside crew, and the report was the track was excellent yesterday [May 6]," said Pinske, who added that they had about 10 inches of rain in the area, which played havoc with the surface and led to some bad spots on the track. ► Sign up for our FREE DRF Harness Digest Newsletter In the eighth race final for horses and geldings, Pinske sends out the 3-1 second choice on the early line in Convoy Hall from post seven. The trainer picked up the son of Muscle Mass following the passing of his former trainer Bob Mcintosh. "The Mcintosh family owns him. He's a bit quirky but has lots and lots of go. Last year I don't think he ended the way they wanted to, and with Bob passing away they had to do something. Being Kentucky eligible they approached me about training him," said Pinske. "He's been a treat, really. I don't know if you put him on a mile track whether he can go in 1:50 with the big boys, but he doesn't get tired. He's a big rugged thing." With eight wins in just 11 career starts, it is clear that Convoy Hall has the ability to win in bunches. Whether he can overcome the outside post and 8-5 morning like chalk Bargain (post three, Dexter Dunn), remains to be seen. "I think he can work his way into it," said Pinske about Convoy Hall's perceived lack of early speed. "He did a lot of his work at 3 up in Canada on the front-end, but he's actually a horse that seems to prefer a trip. If he can get second- or third-over and the fractions work out right, I think he can overcome the post." Switching to the pace, Bath Bomb (post one, Andrew McCarthy) is the 8-5 favorite in the mares division (race one) after winning both preliminary legs while Women Layer rides a four-race winning streak into the $100,000 final for the boys. He'll have to overcome post eight with Todd McCarthy in the bike for trainer Virgil Morgan Jr. One day prior to the Kentucky action, Pinske was in New Jersey at the Meadowlands, watching his potential Hambletonian entrant Go Dog Go make his first qualifying start of the year. The 3-year-old, who was third in the Breeders Crown final last year, finished third and was timed in 1:57 2/5 with a 28 1/5 final quarter. "He's a very fast horse. The problem is his brain can be faster than his feet," said Pinske prior to that mile. "He's really trained back great. It seems like maybe the Greenshoes are better at 3. He has the talent and just has to put it all together." Pinske added that Go Dog Go would get a couple of qualifiers and stay local to the Meadowlands over the next few months, mentioning possibly racing in a Pennsylvania Sire Stakes leg at Pocono if it worked into the schedule.