Red Mile: Captain Kenny J pounces out of the pocket in Kentucky Championship Series

Todd McCarthy zipped Captain Kenny J through an inside seam off a pocket ride to land the winning blow on tempo-setter Command Center and pull a 14-1 upset in the $80,000 Kentucky Championship Series fourth preliminary for 2-year-old trotting colts and geldings on Wednesday (Sept. 2) at The Red Mile.

Leaving from post two, McCarthy nestled into a seat behind Command Center (driven by Dexter Dunn) approaching a 28 second first quarter and tracked the leader intently heading to a 55 4/5 half. Command Center cruised through the last turn under minimal pressure to clock three-quarters in 1:24 1/5 and quickened for home while drifting from the pylons, giving Captain Kenny J clear sailing. McCarthy capitalized on the gap and clawed forward through the lane to collar Command Center by a head at the end of a 1:51 4/5 mile, just three-fifths of a second off the track record. Odds-on favorite Presidente (Scott Zeron) gave chase for third from a mild first-over push through the last turn and Carbon Fiber (Yannick Gingras) closed from last for fourth.

Linda Toscano trains Captain Kenny J, a Captain Corey-Tuvalu colt, for owner Kenneth Jacobs. The colt, a $140,000 purchase from the 2025 Lexington Selected Yearling Sale, collected his second win from six starts and has now banked $76,200. He paid $30.34 to win.

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Kountry Win (Yannick Gingras) persisted towards the front to clinch the single $30,000 Kentucky Commonwealth division for rookie trotting males. Gingras sent the Ron Burke pupil towards the lead in a 28 1/5 first quarter, succumbed to a shuffle into third to a 56 second half and marched uncovered after new leader End Result (Dexter Dunn) to three-quarters in 1:25 1/5 before successfully downing that rival by a neck at the end of a 1:54 2/5 mile. The winning colt, by King Of The North and out of Winndevie, races for owners Brad Grant, Robert Leblanc and Robbie Pryde and paid $8.04 to win.

Marcus Melander doubled in the three $15,000 divisions of the Kentucky Golden Rod Series on the undercard, winning with Opposition (Dexter Dunn, 1:54 winning mile; $9.96 to win) and Gagosian (Dexter Dunn, 1:55 2/5; $2.80). Senor Julio (Tyler Smith, 1:54 1/5; $6.18) took the other division.

Live harness racing at The Red Mile resumes on Sunday (Sept. 6) with a 12-race card headlined by the $80,000 Kentucky Championship Series fourth preliminary for 2-year-old pacing fillies. First-race post time is 5:05 p.m. (EDT).

For more information on the 2026 live harness racing season, visit The Red Mile website (https://www.redmileracing.com).

--press release (Red Mile)--