Aetos Kronos S creates his own headlines

EAST RUTHERFORD, NJ – Heading into the Saturday night harness racing feature at The Meadowlands, the headlines were all about Antognoni S, the standout from the Ron Burke barn who was seeking a seventh straight score to get ready for next week’s $175,000 (est.) Arthur J. Cutler Memorial.

Apparently, Aetos Kronos S (Bold Eagle) forgot to read the paper.

A 9-year-old son of Bold Eagle-Will Of A Woman, Aetos Kronos S was the last one to the lead in the $25,000 winners-over trot, and hit the wire a 1¾-length winner in 1:51.3, a lifetime best.

There was plenty of action early, as Celebrity Bambino, Sir Pinocchio and Aetos Kronos S all left the gate alertly, leaving 6-5 favorite Antognoni S to race at the back of the pack.

Sir Pinocchio led at the quarter in :28 with the speedy Lexus Kody alongside second to challenge and take over the lead. The shuffle continued as Outside The Fire grabbed the top while parked at the half in :55.3.

That’s when the race took on a drastically different look, as 6-5 favorite Antognoni S went on a break, the first time he’s gone off stride this year after staying flat in his first nine outings.

AETOS KRONOS S

Enter Aetos Kronos S, who tracked Outside The Fire before moving to the lead as they hit the far turn. He passed three-quarters with a 1½-length edge in 1:23.2. There would be no more lead changes, as Aetos Kronos S reported home an easy winner after racing clear on the point through the lane. S I P, a 76-1 longshot, rallied furiously to get second and complete an all Marcus Melander-trained exacta. Lexus Kody was third.

“He’s getting better with every run,” said winning driver Dexter Dunn. “We made a move down the back and he was really strong tonight. When you’re racing trotters like that, you always have to be worried [in the stretch], but he was really trotting strongly right to the wire. He’s in good form and we are looking forward to [the Cutler] next week with him.”

After winning for the second time in three tries this year, Aetos Kronos S lifted his lifetime stats to 21 victories in 65 tries, good for earnings of $1,402,291 for owners Jeffrey and Michael Snyder. As the 9-5 second choice, he paid $5.60 to win.

SIRE STAKES ROUNDUP: The second leg of the New Jersey Sire Stakes for 3-year-old pacers saw three dashes – two for colts and geldings and one for fillies – that each went for a purse of $25,000.

In the first division for males, one week after getting nipped on the wire, Manolete (Cattlewash-Glancewithme) made amends with an easy score after going a pocket trip for driver Scott Zeron and trainer Bruce Saunders. He completed the mile in a lifetime-best 1:50.3 and returned $2.80 to win as the 2-5 favorite.

Smooth Dream (Cattlewash-Dreamlands Latte) stayed perfect in four seasonal starts by recording a fourth dominant win in the other division for males. Todd McCarthy handled the Noel Daley trainee, who moved to the top on the way to the five-eighths before drawing off to an easy score in 1:50.4. As the 1-5 public choice, he paid $2.40 to win.

Reckless Abandon (Cattlewash-Reclamation) used a well-timed move on the way to a narrow victory in a lifetime-best 1:50 in the split for fillies. Todd McCarthy opted to vacate the pocket at the five-eighths and went around leader Shesgotthejack before prevailing after a stretch-long battle with 3-2 favorite Worklifebalance by a head. Reckless Abandon paid $7.40 as the 5-2 third choice.

A LITTLE MORE: Dunn and Todd McCarthy were the driving stars of the night, as each recorded four winners. … Mike Russo led the trainers with two walks down victory lane. … There were no winning tickets sold on the 14^th race Hi-5 (or Pentafecta, if you prefer), creating a carryover of $11,399 for Friday’s 14^th dash. … All-source betting on the 14-race program totaled $1,868,276. … Racing resumes Friday at 6:20 p.m.

For complete race results, click here: US Trotting results.

by Dave Little, for The Meadowlands