Red Mile: Kentucky Championship Series kicks off

With the cancelation of racing on Sunday night, The Red Mile wound up hosting the first round of Kentucky Sire Stakes action for 2-year-old male pacers on a non-wagering program on Monday morning, followed by the opener for their trotting counterparts during the pari-mutuel card in the afternoon.

Pacers

Sweet Lou colt Gobstopper brushed to the top heading to the last turn and held command firmly to the finish of a 1:53 1/5 mile in the $80,000 Kentucky Championship Series opening preliminary for 2-year-old pacing colts and geldings.

Leaving from the pylon post, driver Tim Tetrick lifted Gobstopper from the cones after a 29 1/5 first quarter to attack leader Midwind Buxton (driven by Yannick Gingras) to a 58 second half. Gobstopper cleared control and accelerated towards three-quarters in 1:25 1/5 to wrap the mile an in-hand winner by two lengths. Midwind Buxton gave chase in second with Hold Fast (Atlee Bender) storming home for third and Wishawave (Scott Zeron) taking fourth.

Tony Dinges trains Gobstopper, a colt out of the Western Hanover mare Captiva Island, for owner Rick Berks. The colt, costing $75,000 as a yearling at the 2025 Lexington Selected Sale, won his third race from four starts and has now earned $66,520 in his career.

The undercard of the non-wagering program on Monday also featured three $30,000 opening preliminaries of the Kentucky Commonwealth Series. Blue Eyed Stranger (Yannick Gingras) and Debonaire (Dexter Dunn) tied for top honors with 1:53 1/5 miles from their respective Kentucky Commonwealth divisions. Gingras pounced from a pocket trip to win by a length on Ron Burke pupil Blue Eyed Stranger, holding off second-over pursuer Huntmaster (Todd McCarthy) by a length, while Dunn ripped from off-the-speed with Tony Alagna trainee Debonaire to collar late leader Crazygirlsburnsage (Josert Fonseca) for a nose victory. Just Perfect Stuff (Joey Putnam, 1:54 1/5 winning mile) went pillar-to-post to take the other Commonwealth division, staving off first-up challenger Dog Dare You (Dexter Dunn) by a nose for trainer Joe Putnam.

A trio of $15,000 Kentucky Golden Rod preliminaries were also contested on the non-betting card. Rumble And Sway (Scott Zeron, 1:55 1/5), A Bettor Dream (Andy McCarthy, 1:55) and Rowdy Station (Dexter Dunn, 1:53 1/5) all reached the winner's circle from their respective divisions, with Rowdy Station tying the fastest mile paced on the morning. Night Agent (Dexter Dunn, 1:53 4/5), a Captaintreacherous colt out of world champion mare Shebestingin, posted the quickest mile of the three $10,000 Kentucky Wildcat divisions when pulling away from a front-stepping effort for a 4 3/4 length win.

► Sign up for our FREE DRF Harness Digest Newsletter

Trotters

Top Reacher split rivals from a ground-saving trip and collared his rough-gaited stablemate Command Center in the closing strides of a 1:54 mile to land a 24-1 upset in the $80,000 Kentucky Championship Series opening preliminary for 2-year-old trotting colts and geldings.

Starting from the pylon draw, Top Reacher (driven by Mattias Melander) pushed forward and inherited the pocket spot when Captain Kenny J (Tim Tetrick) broke stride past a 28 2/5 first quarter, leaving Special Day (Andy McCarthy) on the lead. Melander followed the leader steadily to a 57 2/5 half as Command Center, the 1-2 favorite, floated off the pylons from third to push uncovered towards the top into the last turn.

Command Center loomed within a length of the leader by three-quarters in 1:26 1/5 and snatched a narrow lead coming into the stretch. Top Reacher looped by a tiring Special Day to enter the fold with Oliver Blu (Scott Zeron) tracking his move and Nights In Miami (Marvin Luna) closing ground from the middle of the pack late. Command Center clung to a diminishing lead and rolled off-stride in the final yards while Top Reacher kept surging and put a neck in front at the beam. Oliver Blu took second via disqualification with Command Center, finishing second, placed third for a lapped-on break at the finish. Nights In Miami took fourth.

Marcus Melander trains Top Reacher, a Muscle Hill-Top Expectations colt, for owner-breeder Daniel Plouffe. The colt won his second race from three starts and has now earned $58,750. He paid $51.14 to win.

A trio of $30,000 Kentucky Commonwealth divisions were also contested on Monday with Whateverittakes As (Tony Hall; $3.14 to win) and Kountry Win (Yannick Gingras; $6.92) sharing top honors with 1:54 3/5 victories in their respective divisions. Hall brushed to the lead with 1-2 favorite Whateverittakes As through the last turn to win comfortably by 1 3/4 lengths over Capt Osborne (Tim Tetrick), who followed the winner's cover for second. Gingras similarly brushed for the lead in the middle of the race and strode under wraps to a half-length win over pocket-popping Gustav Vasa (Marcus Melander). Gaining Muscle (David Miller, 1:56 1/5 winning mile; $64.32) lifted from a stalking trip to win as the longest shot on the board in the other Kentucky Commonwealth division.

Anette Lorentzon trains Whateverittakes As, a Walner-Fortunes Dream colt, for owner-breeder ACL Stuteri Ab, while Ron Burke trains Kountry Win, a King Of The North-Winndevie colt, for owners Brad Grant, Robert LeBlanc and Robbie Pryde.

Trainer Marcus Melander swept the three $15,000 Kentucky Golden Rod divisions on the day, part of a six-win day for the conditioner, with driver Dexter Dunn piloting five of the Melander winners. Melander pupils Erupption Zone (Dexter Dunn, 1:57 2/5; $27.82), Kaws (Scott Zeron, 1:56 3/5; $3.02) and Octavius (Dexter Dunn, 1:55 4/5; $5.26) all won in Golden Rod action, while Gagosian (Dexter Dunn, 1:57 1/5; $4) and Opposition (Dexter Dunn, 1:58; $8.40) registered wins within the three Kentucky Wildcat divisions contested on the 15-race card.

Live harness racing at The Red Mile continues on Tuesday (Aug. 4) with a 15-race card headlined by an $80,000 Kentucky Championship Series division for 2-year-old pacing fillies, carded as Race 6. First-race post time at The Red Mile is 1 p.m. (EDT).

--press releases (Red Mile)--