Yonkers: Alexander pair ready to make some noise in Borgata

The lucrative MGM Borgata Series for pacers commences with the first of five preliminary legs on Monday (March 18) with four $50,000 divisions scheduled at MGM Yonkers Raceway. Trainer Travis Alexander will send out a pair in the opening round and hopes to add to that number in a week as he prepares the veteran Backstreet Shadow in Florida for round two action.

"We're going to qualify Backstreet Shadow this week and he'll be ready for the second leg," said Alexander between training trips with a large stable of 2- and 3-year-olds to prepare for action late this spring.

Alexander has another son of Shadow Play racing on Monday with Desperate Man, the 2021 North America Cup champion, making his 6-year-old debut in the $50,000 initial Borgata leg (race three).

"He had a little splint pinching him in his left front leg," said Alexander. "It had been bothering him for a long time, and it finally popped after his last start [December 18] at Yonkers last year. We were able to give him time to heal in Florida and he's come back very well."

Despite two qualifiers at Pocono, Alexander was in a position where Desperate Man needed extra work.

"We had two that I wanted to race at Yonkers this past Monday [March 11]," Alexander said. "We decided to race Pleaseletmeknow and qualify Desperate Man."

Desperate Man won his qualifier at Pocono on March 13 in 1:54, setting him up nicely for his debut on Monday.

"It was either train him a tough trip at Mark Ford's Training Center or go in the qualifier over a really nice surface at Pocono," Alexander said of his strategy.

Desperate Man drew post five and Alexander hopes his versatility will make him one of the stars in the series.

"He's a horse that does very well grinding on the outside," said Alexander. "In his last start [2023] he was right there first-over in a 53 4/5 final half.”

Desperate Man has the class with nearly $1 million in career earnings and faces five others looking to make a name for themselves in the series. Red Right Hand came out sharp for trainer Nancy Takter in his prep for the Borgata with a solid 1:50 3/5 front-end score at the Meadowlands on March 9. The 6-year-old has plenty of experience over the Yonkers surface but is stepping up in company.

Alexander's Pleaseletmeknow finds himself in a much tougher situation than his stablemate, having drawn post three in the second Borgata division (race four) while up against a pair of past series champions in Hellabalou (2023) and Funatthebeach N (2022). Alexander believes that 2024 will be the time that Pleaseletmeknow steps up.

"We didn't stake him much as a 4-year-old,” said Alexander. "That was intentional. This year we've staked him more heavily, including some races at the Meadowlands. He did pace in [1]:47 and change at the Meadowlands last year."

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Pleaseletmeknow competed in last year's Graduate, but Alexander feels the 5-year-old homebred will be much stronger this year.

"I was very happy with the way he qualified and Matt [Kakaley] was happy with the way he finished out his mile the other night [March 11 at Yonkers]," said Alexander.

Pleaseletmeknow already has a major stakes victory over the Yonkers surface, having captured the 2022 Messenger Stakes in a sharp 1:51 3/5 clocking.

Hellabalou captured last year's Borgata final in a shocker but should get more respect in his 2024 debut in the series on Monday. The 6-year-old by Sweet Lou drew post four after a much-needed tightener over the track.

Funatthebeach N has been a warhorse for trainer Jeff Gillis and unlike most of the competition has been quite active this winter, having already started eight times. A 10-year-old, Funaththebeach N drew post six and is moving up in company.

The 5-year-old I Did It Myway has been a force this winter at Dover Downs and makes his second start on Lasix for trainer Chuck Crissman Jr. in this division. The son of Captaintreacherous sports a career bankroll of $1.26 million, making him the richest horse in this division. I Did It Myway landed post five in the six-horse grouping.

Two impressive veterans return and face each other in the third Borgata division (race six) as the ageless This Is The Plan, a former Borgata final champion, makes his first start as a 9-year-old and looks to add to his $3.1 million career bank account. This Is The Plan drew post four, next to one of last year’s standout veteran performers Covered Bridge (post five). Covered Bridge has won four of his six starts this year for trainer Jeff Gillis.

Linedrive Hanover (post two) is the horse to beat in the fourth Borgata division (race eight) off the strength of a pair of qualifiers at the Meadowlands. The extremely-fast son of Betting Line put in a wicked 1:50 4/5 mile at East Rutherford, New Jersey, mile track on March 9 for trainer Linda Toscano. Linedrive Hanover was last seen at Yonkers last September when he finished fourth in the $250,000 Aria Invitational.

Linedrive Hanover faces five rivals, with three having ample Borgata series experience – Idealsomemagic A (post one), Leonidas A (post four) and Semi Tough (post six). Leonidas A finished second in last year’s Borgata final and Idealsomemagic A finished sixth after capturing three preliminary legs. Semi Tough finished third in the Borgata final in 2022.

Three $40,000 divisions of the Blue Chip Matchmaker Series opening leg are set for action on Friday (March 15) at Yonkers. Post time on both nights is 7:00 P.M. (EDT).