There's a huge jackpot awaiting at the finish line at Buffalo Raceway on Wednesday afternoon (July 5) as a field of five colt and gelding two-year-old trotters go for a $102,500 purse in the New York Sire Stakes. The main event goes off as the seventh on the 13-race program, which gets underway at 2:30 p.m.
Chaplind (Chapter Seven-Lindys Head Nurse) headlines the select field. Coming off a 1-3/4 length win in 1:59.2 at Yonkers Raceway in a $77,300 division of the New York Sire Stakes race on June 22, Chaplind will score from the five post for driver/trainer Trond Smedshammer. Owned by the Purple Haze Stables from nearby Fairport, New York, Chaplind collected $38,500 for his maiden victory and could take home $51,250, which would really skyrocket his bankroll in just two career attempts.
A pair of horses who were in the same race at Yonkers as Chaplind hope to right the ship this time around. Voss Blue Chip (E L Titan-Angelita Hanover) and Blantons Blue (Chapter Seven-Bills Lady) both broke stride and lost all chances, finishing fifth and sixth, respectively. Voss Blue Chip (Matt Kakaley) will start from the two post with Blantons Blue Chip (Anthony MacDonald) beginning from the four-hole.
The main threat, however, should come from Tobern (Crazy Wow-Bertaux). Fresh off a 2-3/4 length victory in a $20,000 Excelsior race at Yonkers Raceway on June 22, Tobern has yet to trail in a race, winning his Excelsior event and two qualifiers in gate-to-wire fashion. He'll be steered by John Stark Jr. from the three spot.
Titan Your Grip (E L Titan-Casaubon) gets the pylons with driver Mark MacDonald in the bike. He finished in a solid second place behind Tobern in the Excelsior Stakes race at Yonkers on June 22, losing by 2-3/4 lengths.
The longest standing trotting record at Buffalo Raceway could be on the line. The two-year-old gelding mark is 2:01.2 established by The Lindy Treaty way back on June 30, 2013. The mark for the colts is 1:58.4 set by Money Macintosh on July 13, 2016. With clear conditions and temperatures expected hover in the mid 80s, those records could be in serious jeopardy.
There will be a pair of $20,000 Excelsior Series races on the card. There is also a $6,000 guaranteed pool in the Pick 5, which starts in the second race. The $15,500 Open Pace for the ladies will be contested in the 11th race, which should add some spice to the program.
(Buffalo Raceway)