Buck I St. Pat supplements

The connections of Buck I St. Pat paid the $5,000 supplement fee to get their horse into the $56,600 filly division of the Dr. Harry M. Zweig Memorial Trot with an eye toward setting a new world record on Saturday at Tioga Downs.

"I probably shouldn't have, but I took a little peek at the world record for 3-year-old trotting fillies on a five-eighths mile track and we're not too far off," confessed managing partner Howard Taylor. "(Driver Dave Palone) said that it’s a pretty good track to try on."

The world record of 1:54.2 was set by Stroke Play in 2003 at Delaware's Dover Downs. Buck I St. Pat currently holds a 1:54.4 mark set on Aug. 2 over Scioto Downs' five-eighths track in Ohio. Palone has committed to driving the filly all season and will be behind her from post three on Saturday. The pair has been designated the 2-1 favorite in the morning line.

Taylor, Edwin Gold and Abraham Basen purchased the Jailhouse Jesse filly following her third start as a 2 year old last year. They own her now with breeder Ron Fuller. The filly was not heavily staked when they bought her and they have supplemented her to as many events as possible to give her the opportunity to race for big purses.

"August was a very tough month stakes-wise; she didn't have a lot on her schedule," explained Taylor. "This filly is not the most fashionably bred individual, so we were scrambling from the start to get her staked. The Zweig looked like a perfect fit, so we decided to supplement."

An Ohio Sire Stakes standout at age two, Buck I St. Pat has taken on some of the top fillies in the country this year. She has seven wins in 10 starts, but has earned just $88,000 to this point despite her connections belief that she can rival the leading fillies in her class.

Buck I St. Pat drew much attention on Aug. 17 as she headed into the $503,000 final of the Elegantimage Stakes at Woodbine Racetrack in Ontario as the heavy favorite off a victory in the elimination. But she broke stride early and finished a disappointing ninth.

"It was devastating," said Taylor of his emotions after that race. "Dave (Palone) said when he took her out on the track, he knew he was in trouble. After the race, she had this look in her eye that she was trying to tell us something was wrong and we couldn't figure it out," explained Taylor.

The filly wasn't right again in her next start and Taylor asked the trainer to check her for ulcers.

"Sure enough, she had horrible ulcers," he recalled. "The vet said on a scale of one to five, she was a five. We treated her and since then she's set two track records (at The Meadows in Pennsylvania and at Scioto Downs). Dave said she was just a different horse after clearing up the ulcers."

Now back in form, Taylor believes Buck I St. Pat is not only the best among the Filly Zweig field, but could rival the best filly in the country—Hambletonian Oaks winner Passionate Glide, who is undefeated in seven starts this year.

"I'd like to take a shot at Passionate Glide," said Taylor. "I don't know if we could beat her, but I don't think there's another horse that (Buck I St. Pat) can't touch."

Also competing in the Filly Zweig are Hambletonian Oaks starters Velma K from the rail and Workout Doll from post four. They finished sixth and ninth, respectively, last week.

Also of note are Wellesley Hall, handled by Hall of Famer Jim Doherty from post five, and Incredible Fortuna, handled by Ivan Davies from post 10. Both fillies won their New York State Fair divisions last weekend at Tioga Downs. (NYSS)

The complete field and morning line odds for the Filly Division of the Dr. Harry M. Zweig Memorial Trot is:

Dr. Harry M. Zweig Memorial Trot #32

Race 7—Filly Division--$56,600—Approximate post time 9:00 p.m.

PP Horse (Morning Line) Driver/Trainer

1 Velma K (5-1) David Miller/Paul Buer

2 Stardust (12-1) Gaetan Brunet/Gaetan Brunet

3 Buck I St. Pat (2-1) Dave Palone/Mickey Burke

4 Workout Doll (5-1) John Campbell/Chuck Sylvester

5 Wellesley Hall (8-1)) Jim Doherty/Jim Doherty

6 Ackbro Ms. Perfect (8-1) Scott Mongeon/Scott Mongeon

7 Azalea Gal (12-1) Ron Pierce/Richard Norman

8 Newyorkjoyants (15-1) Steven Reisenweaver/Steven Reisenweaver

9 Four Starz Lindy (12-1) Trond Smedshammer/Trond Smedshammer

10 Incredible Fortuna (12-1) Ivan Davies/Ivan Davies

« Back