 Photo: Grace Zimmers |  Photo: Curtis Salonick |
By: Jerry Connors, Jr.
CHESTER PA – This Sunday afternoon (May 24) Harrah’s Philadelphia will be proud to present as good a card of racing as has been seen in North America so far in 2026, with $611,815 in purses to be contested during the track’s annual marquee “Super Sunday” program beginning at 12:40 p.m., featuring fifteen contests that will include eleven equine millionaires, as well two defending champions from the $100,000 Invitationals of 2025 (both among the seven-figure eleven mentioned).
Following is an overview of the three centerpiece $100,000 Invitational races for the most talented established performers in the sport, along with third preliminary round action of Pennsylvania Sire Stakes / Stallion Series racing for the “glamour division,” the three-year-old pacing males. A Sire Stakes division in race ten will start off a Pick 4 wager that is guaranteed to have a $10,000 pool, with the three Invites the last three legs of the bet – the horses in this Pick 4 have combined lifetime winnings over $21 million.
$100,000 JOSEPH AUGER MEMORIAL PACE (race 13; #senditin race 5, Open race 1)
The defending Auger champion is Bythemissal, who has the greatest lifetime earnings of any entrant on the Super Sunday card, $2,562,144, and who has a lifetime record of 1:46.4, taken at Woodbine Mohawk. Bythemissal has had two starts this year, missing by just a nose in the top class at The Meadows in his return, and then having to race from an impossible spot at Miami Valley. He’s likely to get a better trip today as he starts from post three for driver Yannick Gingras and trainer Ron Burke.
Ken Hanover certainly turned some heads in his 2026 bow at Pocono, coming from sixth at headstretch and passing a good field like it was attached to the track. The frequent winner, however, is stuck behind the eight-ball, the outside starting spot, in this elite field and has his work cut out for him for driver Tim Tetrick and trainer Polie Mallar.
There is also the $50,000 #senditin Invitational pace, featuring three millionaires and the world’s fastest horse on a 5/8-mile track, Ruthless Hanover, with that 1:46.3 coming here in the 2023 Auger – “Ruthless” would join the Millionaire’s Club with a victory here. Toss in a $25,000 Open pace to start the card, and the free-for-allers assembled for Super Sunday have collective earnings of $17.1M.
$100,000 BETSY ROSS MARES PACE (race 12)
Double defending champion and 2024 Horse of the Year Twin B Joe Fresh has not quite returned to her top form yet, but the Chris Ryder barn will send a pretty good “replacement” in Miki And Minnie, who starts from post six. Miki And Minnie was divisional champion at two and three, and she has qualified well for this, her first seasonal start. Trainer Ryder and driver Dexter Dunn could make it three Ross Paces in a row, as Dexter has the perch behind “M&M” Sunday.
A very dangerous foe from the rail will be the Kiwi import Louies Girl N for driver Jason Bartlett and trainer Per Engblom. Louies Girl N has won five of seven starts so far in 2026, and she has the kind of tactical speed that could set up a good journey for her if things get overheated on the front end. Miki And Minnie’s big rival over the last two years, Rodeo Drive Deo, will start from post seven for Team Burke/Gingras after impressing in her comeback mile at Pocono with a 1:49.4 final clocking.
$100,000 MAXIE LEE MEMORIAL TROT (race 11)
If you’ve seen a lot of Yannick Gingras and Ron Burke in this release, here they are again, as the sponsorship behind Antognoni S, who starts from post four in the Lee. Antognoni S has won both of his seasonal starts, downing defending Trotter of the Year last time, and is on a five-race winning streak, obviously starting last year when he posted sixteen victories. This horse has good speed, but he has been irresistible just grinding up into contention until overpowering the opposition.
Aetos Kronos S, winner of the 2025 Lee, could earn trainer Marcus Melander his third straight win in this race and Dexter Dunn his second, as they combined behind the horse for last year’s victory. However, the fates of the post positional draw were not with him here, as he will be forced to contend with the very difficult number eight outermost post. “Aetos” had a useful race in finishing second in the Cutler at The Meadowlands last week in his first race of 2026.
PENNSYLVANIA SIRE STAKES and STALLION SERIES, three-year-old pacing males
(Sire Stakes races 7, 10, and 14; Stallion Series races 3, 4, 6, 8, 9)
Both groupings of the “glamour division” sophomores have two horses who have won both of their preliminary races to date. On the Sire Stakes side, the resemblance beyond the two doublers, Another C Note and Sneaky Squeaky, goes even further – both horses, relatively unheralded at the year’s beginning, are six-for-six in 2026 competition. Another C Note will be in the tenth race, the event kicking off the $10G Pick 4 wager, while Sneaky Squeaky will race just after the big Invites in race fourteen.
A fate that has befallen quite a few of the highly-regarded horses on this card also caught up with Really Bright – if he is to win his third straight Stallion Series prelim in race three, he’ll have to surmount the outside post. Ballroom Affair, on the other hand, will be starting from post two and he looks for another PaStS conquest and to keep his 2026 scorecard unblemished after four starts.
Any scratches or late driver changes would be available after noon on Thursday. The free Philly program pages for the great Super Sunday card should also be available on Thursday afternoon at www.phha.org.
CHESTER PA – This Sunday afternoon (May 24) Harrah’s Philadelphia will be proud to present as good a card of racing as has been seen in North America so far in 2026, with $611,815 in purses to be contested during the track’s annual marquee “Super Sunday” program beginning at 12:40 p.m., featuring fifteen contests that will include eleven equine millionaires, as well two defending champions from the $100,000 Invitationals of 2025 (both among the seven-figure eleven mentioned).
Following is an overview of the three centerpiece $100,000 Invitational races for the most talented established performers in the sport, along with third preliminary round action of Pennsylvania Sire Stakes / Stallion Series racing for the “glamour division,” the three-year-old pacing males. A Sire Stakes division in race ten will start off a Pick 4 wager that is guaranteed to have a $10,000 pool, with the three Invites the last three legs of the bet – the horses in this Pick 4 have combined lifetime winnings over $21 million.
$100,000 JOSEPH AUGER MEMORIAL PACE (race 13; #senditin race 5, Open race 1)
The defending Auger champion is Bythemissal, who has the greatest lifetime earnings of any entrant on the Super Sunday card, $2,562,144, and who has a lifetime record of 1:46.4, taken at Woodbine Mohawk. Bythemissal has had two starts this year, missing by just a nose in the top class at The Meadows in his return, and then having to race from an impossible spot at Miami Valley. He’s likely to get a better trip today as he starts from post three for driver Yannick Gingras and trainer Ron Burke.
Ken Hanover certainly turned some heads in his 2026 bow at Pocono, coming from sixth at headstretch and passing a good field like it was attached to the track. The frequent winner, however, is stuck behind the eight-ball, the outside starting spot, in this elite field and has his work cut out for him for driver Tim Tetrick and trainer Polie Mallar.
There is also the $50,000 #senditin Invitational pace, featuring three millionaires and the world’s fastest horse on a 5/8-mile track, Ruthless Hanover, with that 1:46.3 coming here in the 2023 Auger – “Ruthless” would join the Millionaire’s Club with a victory here. Toss in a $25,000 Open pace to start the card, and the free-for-allers assembled for Super Sunday have collective earnings of $17.1M.
$100,000 BETSY ROSS MARES PACE (race 12)
Double defending champion and 2024 Horse of the Year Twin B Joe Fresh has not quite returned to her top form yet, but the Chris Ryder barn will send a pretty good “replacement” in Miki And Minnie, who starts from post six. Miki And Minnie was divisional champion at two and three, and she has qualified well for this, her first seasonal start. Trainer Ryder and driver Dexter Dunn could make it three Ross Paces in a row, as Dexter has the perch behind “M&M” Sunday.
A very dangerous foe from the rail will be the Kiwi import Louies Girl N for driver Jason Bartlett and trainer Per Engblom. Louies Girl N has won five of seven starts so far in 2026, and she has the kind of tactical speed that could set up a good journey for her if things get overheated on the front end. Miki And Minnie’s big rival over the last two years, Rodeo Drive Deo, will start from post seven for Team Burke/Gingras after impressing in her comeback mile at Pocono with a 1:49.4 final clocking.
$100,000 MAXIE LEE MEMORIAL TROT (race 11)
If you’ve seen a lot of Yannick Gingras and Ron Burke in this release, here they are again, as the sponsorship behind Antognoni S, who starts from post four in the Lee. Antognoni S has won both of his seasonal starts, downing defending Trotter of the Year last time, and is on a five-race winning streak, obviously starting last year when he posted sixteen victories. This horse has good speed, but he has been irresistible just grinding up into contention until overpowering the opposition.
Aetos Kronos S, winner of the 2025 Lee, could earn trainer Marcus Melander his third straight win in this race and Dexter Dunn his second, as they combined behind the horse for last year’s victory. However, the fates of the post positional draw were not with him here, as he will be forced to contend with the very difficult number eight outermost post. “Aetos” had a useful race in finishing second in the Cutler at The Meadowlands last week in his first race of 2026.
PENNSYLVANIA SIRE STAKES and STALLION SERIES, three-year-old pacing males
(Sire Stakes races 7, 10, and 14; Stallion Series races 3, 4, 6, 8, 9)
Both groupings of the “glamour division” sophomores have two horses who have won both of their preliminary races to date. On the Sire Stakes side, the resemblance beyond the two doublers, Another C Note and Sneaky Squeaky, goes even further – both horses, relatively unheralded at the year’s beginning, are six-for-six in 2026 competition. Another C Note will be in the tenth race, the event kicking off the $10G Pick 4 wager, while Sneaky Squeaky will race just after the big Invites in race fourteen.
A fate that has befallen quite a few of the highly-regarded horses on this card also caught up with Really Bright – if he is to win his third straight Stallion Series prelim in race three, he’ll have to surmount the outside post. Ballroom Affair, on the other hand, will be starting from post two and he looks for another PaStS conquest and to keep his 2026 scorecard unblemished after four starts.
Any scratches or late driver changes would be available after noon on Thursday. The free Philly program pages for the great Super Sunday card should also be available on Thursday afternoon at www.phha.org.
RSS Feed
