Red Mile: Big Ranger looks for revenge versus Apex in Kentucky Futurity

It will be eight weeks since the Hambletonian was contested at the Meadowlands and Apex nosed out rival Big Ranger in an epic stretch duel. The two are among 11 entered for Saturday's 134th edition of the $575,000 Grade 1 Kentucky Futurity at Lexington's famed Red Mile in the third jewel in trotting's Triple Crown.

This year's Futurity will also have an international feel to it as trainer Marcus Melander sends out six in the field with a pair of European driving stars Bjorn Goop and Orjan Kihlstrom hopping across the Atlantic to compete.

For trainer Anette Lorentzon, who came within a nose of capturing her first Hambletonian in August with Big Ranger, racing in Kentucky could be to her advantage. Before this year's Hambo, Lorentzon turned down a chance to race in an Ohio Sires Stakes at Northfield Park before the big race but had no issue sending Big Ranger to Delaware, Ohio, where he romped in an Ohio Breeders Championship race during Jug week.

"Northfield and Delaware are two totally different tracks," said Lorentzon of her decision. "He had never raced at Northfield, and it would have been a five-hour ship."

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Big Ranger was at his best when Lorentzon shipped him to New Jersey where he captured a Hambletonian elimination and then missed by a snout in a record-setting 1:49 2/5 mile.

"We gave him some time after the Hambletonian and Timmy (Tetrick) has been very happy with him since," said Lorentzon of the Hall of Fame driver who recently eclipsed the 15,000 mark in career driving victories. "The race at Delaware was more like a training mile for him. The track was a bit deep."

Big Ranger drew post nine on the outside in the Futurity, and Lorentzon was concerned about it but not exactly ready to surrender. "He drew post nine for the Sire Stakes final and he drew post eight in the Hambletonian eliminations," Lorentzon said about two races which resulted in victories, with Big Ranger trotting to a 1:50 personal-best in the Hambletonian elim.

In addition to the international blend in this year's Kentucky Futurity, it is also the first time that five horses in the race enter with 1:50 mile-record times or better. Apex has the fastest mile of the year with his 1:49 2/5 clocking, but Inexpressable had a virtuoso performance when he captured the $400,000 Kentucky Championship Series final over the Red Mile surface on September 20. Inexpressable captured the first leg of the Triple Crown for trainer Lucas Wallin in June when the son of Walner took the MGM Yonkers Trot. Wallin captured the 2022 Kentucky Futurity with Rebuff for driver Tim Tetrick, who also was on board Inexpressable in the Yonkers Trot.

Though Melander has the most horses in the field, Lorentzon was focused on just one from his stable. "I think Apex and Inexpressable are the two main horses we're up against. Inexpressable went a big trip the other day," Lorentzon said of the dominant performance where he drew away from Melander's American Power in the stretch drive.

American Power took his 1:50 mark this year in capturing the Zweig Memorial at Vernon Downs. Routinely unlucky in the post draw (post 10 in the Hambletonian), American Power landed post two for James MacDonald in Saturday's contest and hopes to rebound from a pair of second-place finishes.

Nix Nacken picks up Bjorn Goop as Scott Zeron, who drove him to victory in the Grade 1 Canadian Trotting Classic a week ago (September 26) at Woodbine Mohawk Park, is committed to Inexpressable. Nix Nacken, a son of Muscle Hill, showed plenty of courage in tracking down stablemate Apex after racing a long first-over grind in the final-half of the Canadian Trotting Classic. A 1:50 winner at the Meadowlands in New Jersey Sire Stakes action earlier this year, Nix Nacken drew the pole on Saturday.

While Big Ranger has won both of his starts since the Hambletonian, the same is not the case for Apex, who was a disappointing fourth in a New Jersey Classic elimination and then fell short in the stretch to his stablemate just a week ago. He looks to bounce back for driver Dexter Dunn and trainer Melander, who are both looking for their second Kentucky Futurity victories. Dunn captured the 2020 edition with Amigo Volo and Melander took home his first in 2019 with Greenshoe.

Trainer Ake Svanstedt won his only Kentucky Futurity while setting the mile standard with Six Pack, a 1:49 1/5 winner in 2018. Svanstedt returns with Magic Punk (post eight), a son of Wishing Stone who captured the Kentucky Futurity in straight heats in 2010 for trainer Dewayne Minor. Magic Punk has been competitive against the top-class sophomores all season long and finished a solid third behind Inexpressable in the Grade 2 Beal at Pocono on August 22.

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Svanstedt will also be represented by Read The Room (post four), a son of Chapter Seven that has campaigned exclusively on the New York Sire Stakes circuit this year. He finished second in the lucrative Sire Stakes final at Yonkers on September 12, overcoming post eight.

The Ron Burke-trained AI took the measure of Read The Room in that $300,000 Sire Stakes final and will be right next to him behind the starting gate from post three. Ronnie Wrenn Jr. has the driving assignment with the career earner of more than $726K.

Melander may have been reaching a bit when he entered Neighver Punt (post five), but the Bar Hopping-sired colt is coming into the race following a career-best 1:51 3/5 victory in the final of the Commonwealth division of the Kentucky Sire Stakes program on September 21.

Zephyr Kemp (post 10) and Spencer Hanover (post 11) are another pair from the Melander entourage that enter the race appearing to be going separate ways regarding recent form. Zephyr Kemp has captured two of his last three races, all stakes events with Todd McCarthy guiding the son of Calgary Games. Zephyr Kemp upset American Power in a Kentucky Championship division on September 13, taking a career-best 1:51 1/5 record in the process.

Spencer Hanover captured the Breeders Crown as a freshman and earlier this season looked to be on track for a big year after capturing the inaugural Oak Grove Trotting Derby in May. The Chapter Seven-sired colt has won just twice since then while missing the board in his last five starts. Spencer Hanover has drawn poorly in his last four races and again finds himself in the second tier on Saturday.

The Kentucky Futurity is the last of 13 races on Saturday's Red Mile program, with the $300,000 Kentucky Filly Futurity preceding it as race 12. There were 11 fillies filling all the available slots for the final, and trainer Nancy Takter will send out four with Madam Cheval (post three), Leading Lady (post nine), Godusa (post one) and She's Moni (post 11). She's Moni makes her first start since winning the $400,000 Kentucky Championship Series final over the Red Mile surface on September 20. Hambletonian Oaks winner Nezuko Kamado S (post eight) looks to rebound following a fourth-place finish in that Kentucky Championship event.

First post on Saturday's Red Mile card is listed for 1:00 P.M. (EDT).