WILKES-BARRE PA – On Monday and Tuesday The Downs at Mohegan Sun Pocono will be hosting $330,000 worth of Pennsylvania All-Stars stakes action for two-year-old trotters, with many well-pedigreed babies already showing racing ability taking another early step towards the top of their classes. Monday will find six divisions of competition for males, while on Tuesday five sections of females will go behind the gate.
The Marcus Melander stable, which has dominated the three-year-old trotting colt division so far with their “Triple G” attack of Greenshoe, Gimpanzee, and Green Manalishi S, will be sending an entrant out in each of the six Monday All-Stars divisions. Five of the Melander sextet show wins in freshman qualifying races – the fastest winner is the Muscle Hill – Nalda Nof colt Hellbent For Am S, who dead-heated for win in 1:56 at The Meadowlands, while another is Rome Pays Off, the Muscle Hill – Order By Wish full brother to Marseille, who just won the Beal Championship here at the expense of Greenshoe and Green Manalishi S.
The two-year-old trotting fillies have already had a leg of their pari-mutuel Pennsylvania Sire Stakes / Stallion Series competition already, with two of the divisional Sire Stakes winners coming to race at Pocono on Tuesday. The fastest cut of the PaSS action conducted this past Tuesday at The Meadows was won by the Father Patrick – Behindclosedoors miss Sister Sledge, who won three straight qualifiers at Gaitway for the Ron Burke stable, the fastest in 1:55.2, then won her purse bow at her “home track” in 1:56.2.
Three other stakes winners racing Tuesday, representing all the levels of Pennsylvania-sired competition, are Aldabra Hanover, the Muscle Hill – Anonyme Hanover baby who also won a Sire Stakes at The Meadows; the Donato Hanover – Headintheclouds filly Path Of Totality, victorious in a Stallion Series division; and Berry Kay, a daughter of Sebastian K S – Spiceberry Hanover who struck the stakes scoreboard on the Pennsylvania fair circuit with a Sire Stakes win at Butler.