Yonkers: Night of Champions to decide the best of New York

The $1.8 million New York Sire Stakes Night of Champions rolls into Yonkers Raceway on Saturday (9/22) with eight $225,000 events for 2- and 3-year-olds of both gaits and sexes. The evening will be a showcase for many New York stars and perhaps the moment for some under-the-radar horses to grab the spotlight.

Near the top of the list in terms of star power is the likely heavy favorite in the 3-Year-Old Pacing Filly final Wisdom Tree. A winner of three straight NYSS races and 10 of 13 races for $274,851 in 2018, Wisdom Tree will start from post four with Tim Tetrick taking over the driving assignment for trainer Ed Hart and owners Thomas Pollack and Jeffrey Cullipher. Tetrick becomes the sixth different driver for the daughter of Betterthancheddar in her last six starts.

“It seems like we have a different driver all the time. It’s hard to believe,” said Hart. “Tim drove her last year in the final. We had the eight-hole and it didn’t work out too well, but who would you rather have than Tim Tetrick?”

While most of the fillies Wisdom Tree will face in the seventh race on Saturday have stayed put racing in New York, the Winbak Farms product has tried Grand Circuit foes in the Nadia Lobell (win) and the Mistletoe Shalee (fourth).

“She might need a trip but she can definitely go with the top ones,” said Hart, who mentioned the Courageous Lady as a possible engagement for her in the future.

Hart also has an entrant in the 2-Year-Old Trotting Colt final for the Pollack/Cullipher ownership team in Horns For Three.

“This is a really nice colt. He started off really good but ran into some difficulty. He has a lot of talent but is a little young-headed. He has some maturing to do,” said Hart.

While starting from post one with Jim Marohn, Jr. could help, Horns For Three is no doubt at a major disadvantage facing the undefeated in six starts Gimpanzee and Thunder, a winner of four of his last five starts.

“Gimpanzee is obviously super. He could be a Hambletonian winner for all I know,” said Hart.

One race before the freshman colt trot, the third on the program, comes the initial Sire Stakes offering on the night as the rookie trotting fillies do battle. With Woodside Charm opting for a stakes race at Hoosier Park, Winndevie looks like the obvious favorite for driver/trainer Trond Smedshammer and owner Purple Haze Stables.

Winndevie suffered the first loss of her six-race career to Woodside Charm in last week’s final leg of the Sire Stakes at Saratoga. Although she has consistently bested her rivals to date and drew a cozy post (three) in the final, Smedshammer isn’t counting the money quite yet.

“She is certainly not heads above the other ones she has been racing against all year,” said Smedshammer, who was uncertain if she will try Grand Circuit foes down the road. “She is eligible to the Breeders Crown but I haven’t decided yet if I’m going to take her or not.”

Like Hart, Smedshammer has two in-to-go, and while Perlucky from post six in the 3-Year-Old Colt Trot won’t attract nearly the wagering attention as his stablemate, maybe that is a mistake. After a couple of dull efforts the trainer added the medication Lasix and saw an immediate improvement in the form of a 1:56 1/5 lifetime best performance over the Yonkers oval.

“He started bleeding on me so I added Lasix. That was his first time on it the other night and it made a world of difference,” said Smedshammer. “I’m feeling a lot better about him now. I wish I would’ve done it earlier.”

The likely favorite standing in Perlucky’s way is Helpisontheway from post four with Jim Morrill, Jr. at the helm for trainer Linda Toscano. He was on a four-race winning streak before a pair of second-place finishes behind top Grand Circuit trotter Six Pack.

A trio of sub 1:52-winning 2-year-old pacers will do battle in race four when Melodies Major (post one), Hickfromfrenchlick (post six) and Major Blake (post eight) hit the track. Tyler Buter and Jason Bartlett will both be back in the bike behind Melodies Major and Major Blake, respectively. Hickfromfrenchlick gets an interesting driver change from trainer Ray Schnittker to Tim Tetrick.

In addition to Hickfromfrenchlick and Wisdom Tree, Tetrick has another live drive in the 2-Year-Old Filly Pace with So Awesome. From Scott DiDomenico trainee has compiled an 8-4-2-0 record in 2018 while leading this Sire Stakes division in points. She’ll start from post six.

The lone 2017 winner looking for a repeat on Saturday is Lucky Ava in the sixth race 3-Year-Old Filly Trot. The Ake Svanstedt-trained daughter of Lucky Chucky, one of five horses from that barn along with three from the Linda Toscano stable in the race, will have her work cut out for her versus stablemate and world record holder Plunge Blue Chip.

The final NYSS race will undoubtedly pose the question as to whether trainer Rene Allard can get a formless Springsteen to rebound after a string of lackluster performances. The Max Hempt winner lays over the field at his best and gets the advantage of post one with Brian Sears at the controls.

The NYSS finals are carded as races 2 to 9 on the 12-race Saturday program. Post time is 6:50 p.m.