The best 3-year-old pacers on the continent will line up this Saturday evening at Mohawk Racetrack in four eliminations for the upcoming $1.5 million Pepsi North America Cup on June 27. The Cup eliminations, each worth $50,000, drew a record 40 horses, eclipsing the former mark of 35 hopefuls in 2004.
Each elimination will qualify the first two finishers for the final, the richest harness race in North America, with two of the four third-place finishers drawn by lot also advancing. The four winners will also get the opportunity to select a post position before the balance of the field is drawn on Tuesday.
Last year, Somebeachsomewhere won his elim easily, en route to a Cup triumph and eventual Horse of the Year honours, both in Canada and the United States. This year, there is no such standout for the 26th edition of the Cup, though the elims include Breeders Crown champion Well Said, the four winners of last weekend's Burlington Stakes (undefeated Keep it Real, Carnivore, Ideal Danny and OK Boromir), well-regard Art Colony, Passmaster Hanover, winner of the New Jersey Classic last Saturday at the Meadowlands and favoured third place finisher, Dial or Nodial. The first elim, at 8:54 pm, is headed by Keep It Real, Carnivore and Well Said. Keep It Real, a son of Real Artist, kept his perfect record intact, now at 6 wins, with a hard fought quarter-length decision over Lisagain and Schoolkids in the fastest Burlington division, 1:50.2. Owned by Wayne Whebby of Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, who also raced Feelin Friskie, the 2006 Cup runner-up, Keep It Real, trained by Joey Shea, faces a major challenge to remain perfect, though, as he drew the outside post 10 with driver Steve Condren. Carnivore (PP3), owned and trained by Jack Darling, posted an upset in his Burlington, a 1:51.3 clocking, edging heavily-favoured Art Colony by a neck on the wire. Driven by Paul MacDonell, who steered Somebeachsomewhere during his two illustrious campaigns, Carnivore, a son of Real Desire, has won seven of 14 career outings and over $355,000. "I was pleased with the way Carnivore stepped it up (to win) in his Burlington split," said Darling, who trained and co-owned 1997 Cup winner Gothic Dream. "But it's still a wide-open field, that's for sure. You've got to have the horse, but you're also going to need some luck this year. "I've put aluminum shoes on Carnivore for the first time, going into the elims. It's a little risky, but it's something that has worked well for me in the past." Well Said (PP4, Ron Pierce), trained by Steve Elliott for owners Jeffrey Snyder of New York and Lothlorien of Cheltenham, Ontario, disappointed as the favourite in his Burlington split, although finishing a close fourth on the rail to Keep It Real, one and one-half lengths behind. It was only the second start of the season for the Western Hanover colt, though, who had opened with a win at Chester. Last year, he won four of 12 outings and over $600,000, capped by his upset victory in the Breeders Crown. Dial or Nodial (PP2), driven by Brian Sears, is the likely favourite in the second elim at 9:15 pm. Trained by Jim Campbell, Dial Or Nodial, a son of Western Ideal, won eight of 12 starts last year en route to earnings $429,740 for owners Arlene and Jules Siegel of New Hope, Pennsylvania. This year, he took a career best 1:50.1 score in the $200,000 New Jersey Sire Stakes Championship on May 30 at the Meadowlands before failing as the 3-5 choice last weekend in the final of the New Jersey Classic, finishing third, a half-length behind Passmaster Hanover. His challengers include OK Boromir (PP3, Luc Ouellette) and Ideal Danny (PP6, Ron Pierce), both winners of Burlington divisions last Saturday, in 1:51.2 and 1:51.1, respectively. The third elimination at 9:57 pm, features Passmaster Hanover, a son of 1994 Cup winner Cams Card Shark, who upset Dial or Nodial in the New Jersey Classic. Trained by Blair Burgess, who won the 2007 Cup with Tell All, Passmaster Hanover also drew the difficult 10-hole for driver Tim Tetrick. He's won five of seven career starts for co-owners Jeffrey Snyder of New York and Brittany Farms of Versailles, Kentucky and $287,375. His foes include Annieswesterncard (PP9, Ron Pierce), a career earner of $346,060, but a disappointing fifth to OK Boromir in a Burlington division and the elim's leading money winner, If I Can Dream (PP5, George Brennan), a winner in three of four starts this year and $466,175 in his two seasons to date. The fourth and final elim at 10:18 pm is topped by the Casie Coleman-trained, John Campbell-driven Art Colony (PP7), a son of Artsplace, who lost by a neck as the heavy favourite to Carnivore in a Burlington division in his second start of the year, after opening with a conditioned win a week earlier at Mohawk. His rivals include Vintage Master (PP3, Daniel Dube), trained by Jimmy Takter, who just missed by a head to Passmaster Hanover in the New Jersey Classic, his fifth runner-up finish this year in seven starts. Since 1984, 14 of 25 Cup winners also emerged victorious in their elimination, including last year's winner, Somebeachsomewhere. The Burlington has also proven to be a decent barometer of Cup success, as four of the last nine Cup winners also won Burlington divisions - Gallo Blue Chip (2000), Red River Hanover (2002), Total Truth (2006) and Somebeachsomewhere (2008). (WEG) First elim:
PEPSI NORTH AMERICA CUP XXVI - ELIMINATION - 3 YEAR OLDS.
Post time: 08:54 P.M. 1 Fireintheshark G Brennan/J Campbell 2 Lisagain(L) Y Gingras/E Miller 3 Carnivore P Macdonell/J Darling 4 Well Said R Pierce/ S Elliott 5 Chasin Racin(L) J Campbell/B Teague 6 Glad To Be Back(L) L Ouellette/J Wilkinson 7 Waffles And Cream J Morrill Jr./T Brainard 8 Captain Sir J Jamieson/C Jamieson 9 Nob Hill High D Miller/ W Webb 10 Keep It Real S Condren/J Shea Second elim: PEPSI NORTH AMERICA CUP XXVI - ELIMINATION - 3 YEAR OLDS.
Post time: 09:15 P.M. 1 Stinger Blue Chip J Campbell/C Coleman 2 Dial Or Nodial B Sears/J Campbell 3 Ok Boromir L Ouellette/ F Baker Jr 4 Ideal Race Ma Macdonald/ T Brainard 5 Johnny Z(L) B Sears/B Teague 6 Ideal Danny(L) R Pierce/ E Miller 7 Mysticism T Tetrick/ S Elliott 8 Bay Of Sharks M Baillargeon/B Wallace 9 Hay Goodlooking G Brunet/G Brunet 10 Mighty Me(L) J Moiseyev/ R Furlong Third elim:
PEPSI NORTH AMERICA CUP XXVI - ELIMINATION - 3 YEAR OLDS.
Post time: 09:57 P.M. 1 Schoolkids To Be Announced/T Brainard 2 Sheer Desire D Palone/ R Burke) 3 Arctic Warrior D Miller/ B Wallace 4 Shipps Xpectancy J Moiseyev/ J Kopas 5 If I Can Dream(L) G Brennan/T Brainard 6 Stonebridge Terror M Saftic/J Darling 7 Barber Pole B Sears/B Teague 8 Manhattan Bluechip Ra Waples/M Austin 9 Annieswesterncard R Pierce/T Deters 10 Passmaster Hanover T Tetrick/ B Burgess Fourth elim:
PEPSI NORTH AMERICA CUP XXVI - ELIMINATION - 3 YEAR OLDS. Post time: 10:18 P.M. 1 Fire On The Water P MacDonell/M Brethour 2 Fast Pay P Macdonell/ D Menary 3 Vintage Master D Dube/ J Takter 4 Drop Red G Brennan/ R Horowitz 5 Straight Shooting T Tetrick/T Brainard 6 Sombrero Blue Chip S Condren/R Laarman 7 Art Colony J Campbell/ C Coleman 8 Millionaire Cam J Jamieson/T Osullivan 9 Mr Wiggles(L) C Callahan/B Teague 10 Chief Of The Beach S Filion/ B Wallace
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