Top mares qualify at The Downs

WILKES-BARRE, PA – A trio of distinguished harness racing mares, with lifetime earnings of $4,684,907, put in distinguished appearances during Wednesday morning qualifying racing at The Downs at Mohegan Sun Pocono – and all three of them were trained by Nancy Takter.

The biggest earner ($3,142,936) in the group is the Muscle Hill six-year-old Manchego, currently #1 in the Top Ten polls. Dexter Dunn came to Pocono to drive, and he sent Manchego to the front in very moderate splits of :29.4 and :58.3, then shifted into a faster gear, and the mare hit the three-quarters in 1:25.3 and the finish in 1:53.1 – a 54.3 back half.

She remains in fine shape for Black Horse Racing, and fans eagerly await a matchup with archrival Atlanta, who won the Sebastian K S Invitational here this past Saturday in a track record 1:50.1.

There are twelve horses declared in the Roses Are Red pace for mares at Woodbine Mohawk Park a week from Saturday. Nine will go in a prep race there this Saturday; a tenth, divisional leader Lyons Sentinel, beat male rivals at Philly this past Sunday in 1:50; and the other two, JK First Lady ($853,900) and Peaky Sneaky ($688,071), were in their own private qualifier at Pocono on Wednesday.

JK First Lady, a daughter of Western Ideal out of former Horse of the Year JK She’salady, rallying out of the pocket for Dunn, Takter, and 3 Brothers Stables to catch Peaky Sneaky (Matt Kakaley) by a half-length in 1:50.3 after the latter had put up splits of :28, 56, and 1:23.3.

These qualifiers (no sound) can be seen through the Pennsylvania Harness Horsemen’s website on YouTube by clicking here.

From the PHHA/The Downs