By: Jerry Connors, Jr. 
WILKES-BARRE PA – The Chris Oakes stable sent out a trio of impressive winners in qualifying action on Wednesday morning at The Downs at Mohegan Sun Pocono, headed by the world’s fastest trotter, Homicide Hunter.
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The seven-year-old altered son of Mr Cantab, who rewrote the standard for the gait with his 1:48.4 victory at Lexington last year and who won his 2018 Breeders Crown event at this track, showed he was coming to his sixth campaign in fine shape, rattling off splits of 29.1, 58.1, and 1:26.4 en route to a 10½-length victory under the guidance of Matt Kakaley.

Oakes also sent out a pair of impressive sophomore colts by American Ideal with fine maternal connections. The faster was American Mercury, who shows horses such as American Jewel, Luck Be Withyou, and Three Diamonds not far back along his maternal line, who went wire-to-wire in 1:52.4, last quarter 27.4, with Tyler Buter at the controls.
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Buter, who posted his 3000th career driving win at Pocono on Sunday night, was also in charge of the Oakes trainee Shake That House, third in the Metro and a ¾ brother to Breeders Crown winner Split The House. Shake That House came his own back fractions in 55.2 – 27.3 to get to the wire first in 1:53.1.

By: Jerry Connors, Jr. 
WILKES-BARRE PA – Team Allard has now taken both $30,000 Bobby Weiss Series Championships conducted so far at The Downs at Mohegan Sun Pocono, adding another distaff victory to pacer Cardiff’s yesterday with a recent acquisition, the trotter Town Hall Justice, who lowered her mark by three seconds to 1:53.4 despite a track that was downgraded to “good” after midcard rain.
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The victorious Justice Hall mare forced a 27.2 quarter before yielding to Run Lindy Run, then came out soon after her opponent tripped the timer in 56.2 at the half. Simon Allard got his charge to the lead late on the backstretch, with the two favorites Fade Into You (two-time prelim winner) and Spring In Paris (three-time prelim winner) on her heels at and past the 1:24.2 3/4s.

By: Jerry Connors, Jr. 
CHESTER PA – The Jim Campbell stable was certainly primed for the Tuesday morning qualifiers at Harrah’s Philadelphia, as four of its members won their a.m. events, all owned by Fashion Farms.
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Last year’s million-dollar winner Crystal Fashion, now four, went his own third quarter in 27.4 to sweep his field in 1:57 for driver Tim Tertrick. The Cantab Hall gelding had won a qualifier a tick slower last week.

Two three-year-old trotting fillies won for Campbell. An intriguing one is Millie’s Possession, a daughter of Possess The Will out of Fashion Athena, a $300,000+ winner who won in 1:53.2 at two. Millie’s Possession did not race at two, and went in 2:03.1 in her first line last week, but today she came home in 28.3 for Dexter Dunn to win in 1:56.2. Her likely stakes compatriot is the Donato Hanover miss Jazzy Fashion, home in 1:57.1 for David Miller 

By: Jerry Connors, Jr. 
WILKES-BARRE PA –Cardiff had to go the dreaded “tuck-then-first-over” journey in the $30,000 Bobby Weiss Series Championship for pacing fillies and mares at The Downs at Mohegan Sun Pocono on Monday, but the Sportswriter mare showed rare pluck in grinding raw for the last 5/8 and still getting the decision in a lifetime best 1:51.1.
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Cardiff, who had a first and two seconds in her Weiss prelims, tucked midpack from post eight for driver Simon Allard, as a pair of horses on a three-race win streak, 2-5 favorite Ghostwriter and Girl’s Got Rhythm, argued through a smoking 26.2 quarter, with the latter claiming the top at that point. Cardiff was again on the move under the wire the first time as Girl’s Got Rhythm led the field to the half in 54.4, then cut into the pacesetter’s advantage by the 1:22.3 3/4s, with the chalk lurking in the pocket.

Turning for home it looked like the trip was starting to wear on Cardiff, as Ghosttothepost went to the Pocono Pike to try to catch Girl’s Got Rhythm. But Cardiff dug deep into her talent pool and gamely paced on to be 1½ lengths ahead at the wire, with Ghosttothepost next, a neck ahead of Girl’s Got Rhythm. Simon’s brother Rene trains the courageous winner for Allard Racing Inc. and Carmen Carson.

By: Jerry Connors, Jr. 
WILKES-BARRE PA – Tyler Buter recorded the 3000th driving victory of his career during a special Easter Sunday twilight card at The Downs at Mohegan Sun Pocono. Buter rallied Daddy Let Me Drive into a 28.1 last quarter, closing furiously in the last 1/16 to be up right on the money.
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The 33-year-old Buter, from a famous racing family, showed early talent in the sulky when he recorded his first win with I Luv My Pasture at the Gladwin (MI) fair before his 17th birthday. Along the way to his 3000 wins and almost $35 million in sulky earnings, Buter had his best money year in 2015, when his mounts brought home over $5 million; his best year for visiting the winners circle was 2007, when he won 444 times – while driving at 30 different tracks, more than half fairs in his native Michigan.

By: Jerry Connors, Jr. 
WILKES-BARRE PA – Last week Turbo Hill and Sports Legend faced each other in a Bobby Weiss Series preliminary in the male pacers ranks; Turbo Hill drew inside his main rival, and even though Sports Legend was favored, Turbo Hill was victorious.
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This past Saturday at The Downs at Mohegan Sun Pocono, one crucial factor changed at the draw – Sports Legend drew inside Turbo Hill. Though the crowd went to Turbo Hill this week, Sports Legend teamed with driver Jim Morrill Jr. to use the positional edge to the max, winning a $15,000 division of the final preliminary in a lifetime best of 1:51.

By: Jerry Connors, Jr. 
CHESTER PA – The Big Jim gelding Tiger Thompson roared to the fastest mile of the young season at Harrah’s Philadelphia on Friday afternoon, fronting a good field at every call to win the $18,000 pacing feature in 1:50.1.
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Dexter Dunn got the strong Kiwi-bred to the lead before a 26.1 quarter despite the outside post seven, then got a breather to the half in 56. There was no catching the Tiger after that, by the tail or by anything else, as he streaked home in 54.1 – 26.4 to be 2 ¾ lengths clear of pocketsitter and countrymate Crockets Cullen N for his second straight win. (Yes, if you toss out that 29.4 second quarter, Tiger Thompson paced his other ¾ of a mile in 1:20.2.)

By: Jerry Connors, Jr. 
CHESTER PA – Tag Up And Go and Watkins emerged as the winners of the joint $14,500 features during the “Trottin’ Thursday” program at Harrah’s Philadelphia.
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Tag Up And Go enjoyed a drop in class, pointing right to the front for driver Marcus Miller and never locking back through splits of 28. 57, 1:25.1, and 1:53.4. Seven Iron raced in the pocket and stayed closest to the winner, but he was still 2¾ lengths behind under the line to the victorious Angus Hall gelding, who now has 42 wins and $560,466 to his lifetime credit. Rob Harmon trains the winner for owners Lester Gelardi Jr. and Anthony Passafaro.

By: Jerry Connors, Jr. 
CHESTER PA – Corey Callahan got career driving win number 6000 on Wednesday afternoon at Harrah’s Philadelphia, breaking the maiden of the A Rocknroll Dance gelding Don’t Judge A Book with a 1:56.1 victory and then surviving the very late drama of an inquiry, which determined that his horse made a break just after the wire, allowing the milestone victory to stand.
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The 40-year-old Callahan has won over 350 races and in excess of $5 million every year since 2009, with his best season coming in 2015, when he was fifth in North America in victories (636) and money ($9,812,464). Career-wise, the trotters and pacers he has guided have bankrolled $86.7 million.

By: Jerry Connors, Jr. 
WILKES-BARRE PA – Trainer/driver Ray Schnittker shipped in a squadron of three-year-olds who were impressive victors during qualifying events on Wednesday morning at The Downs at Mohegan Sun Pocono.
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Fastest of three three-year-old pacing colts that Schnittker guided to wins was the So Surreal colt Hickfromfrenchlick, named after basketball star Larry Bird, who made very pole a winning one in 1:54, last quarter 27. 2¼ lengths behind Hickfromfrenchlick was Shake That House, third in the Metro at two and a ¾ brother to Breeders Crown winner Split The House.