Qualifying record set

The 2006 Dan Patch Award winner Lis Mara turned in a scintillating 1:49.1 performance in a qualifier at the Meadowlands Thursday, beating Total Truth by 10 3/4 lengths and setting a record for the fastest qualifying effort in history. With Brian Sears in the sulky, Lis Mara was second in an opening quarter of :28.1 before moving to the lead and subsequent fractions of :55.3 and 1:23. He then paced home in :26.1 to draw clear from 2006 Pacer of the Year Total Truth.

“It was an absolutely incredible performance,” co-owner Mike Gulotta told harnessracing.com shortly after the qualifier. “I’m told, although I saw it with my own eyes, that he did it effortlessly. Brian did not pop the plugs; he did not touch the horse. And to come a last three quarters in 1:21 flat, it’s mind-boggling, simply mind-boggling. I can’t believe it; I don’t know why we are so blessed.”

Gulotta’s MJG Racing Stable shares ownership in the 5-year-old son of Cambest with Andy Willinger, with Erv Miller the trainer. Lis Mara qualified at Spring Garden Ranch in Florida in 1:54.2 on April 3, and then eight days later posted a 1:53.2 workout at Southern Oaks Training Center with Sears in the bike.

“(Lis Mara) got a good foundation in him in Florida this winter. He got a little bit taller, but mostly he got a little thicker and a little heavier. He has just turned into an awesome-looking animal,” Miller’s assistant trainer Tony Alagna added.

“We qualified him in (1):53.4 at Spring Garden, and then Brian came down…and we did an official workout at our farm. We wanted to get one good qualifier in him on the limestone here (at the Meadowlands) and make sure we had him set,” he continued. “Brian said he was very good. He said he drove very straight and that he thought he’d get home in :27 and change, but he was just so super strong when they hit the lane, he just hit another gear.”

As for Lis Mara’s first venture toward adding to his $1.1 million career bankroll, Gulotta said, “Let everyone know we plan on racing next Saturday night (April 28) in the Open at the Meadowlands. We are not going to the Dan Patch. This horse is just some kind of gift from God.”

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