Noel Daley liked Buy A Round from the moment he began training the female trotter, particularly because she reminded him of past stable star Cedar Dove. The two-year-old filly has done little to change Daley’s opinion since the beginning of her campaign, winning three of four races, including the New Jersey Sire Stakes (NJSS) championship a month ago.
On Friday at The Meadowlands, Buy A Round (pictured above) will be one of four NJSS champs looking to add a New Jersey Classic Series (NJSC) final to their list of accomplishments. Daley also trains one of the other three, two-year-old male trotter Sig Sauer. The remaining two are two-year-old female pacer Pulp Fiction and three-year-old male trotter Air Power.
New Jersey Sire Stakes champs also will be in action in Saturday’s two New Jersey Classic Series finals: three-year-old male pacer Voukefalas and three-year-old female pacer Ucandoit Blue Chip. The NJCS finals for trotters go for purses of $275,000 while the pacers race for $150,000.
The NJCS, sponsored by The Meadowlands and Standardbred Breeders & Owners Association of New Jersey, is for New Jersey-sired horses and horses eligible to the New Jersey Standardbred Development Fund Stakes.
Buy A Round is a daughter of Walner-On Your Tab owned by breeder Fred Hertrich III. Last week at the Big M, she won her NJCS elimination from post nine by 1-1/2 lengths over Walcango in 1:54.3. She will start the final from post three with Andy McCarthy in the sulky and is the 3-1 morning-line favourite.
“From day one, she reminded me of Cedar Dove, and I knew I had a good one real early with her,” said Daley, referring to his 2011 Dan Patch Award winner. “She’s a little natural. She’s as good a going trotter as I’ve ever had. She’s all business.”
Daley also will send out Miss I La, who finished second to Sunkist Beauty in the other elimination for rookie filly trotters. Miss I La (Walner-Southwind Venus) has raced four times, with two seconds and a third in her three most recent outings. She has been within three-quarters of a length of the winner in all three.
“I trained her down with Buy A Round and loved them both,” said Daley. “Miss I La got sick and had a few little issues along the way, but she will be much improved from that race last week. She was a little aggressive the other day. If she settles down and trips out, she can be right there. She’s not going to out-muscle them right now, but it wouldn’t shock me at all if she won.”
Miss I La will start from post four with driver Scott Zeron and is 10-1.
Sunkist Beauty (Six Pack-Orange Bigi) is the 7-2 second choice after her 1:54.1 score last week. She will leave from post one with trainer/driver Ake Svanstedt.
Sig Sauer, undefeated in three races, is the 2-1 favourite among the two-year-old male trotters. He won his elimination in 1:55.4, finishing a neck ahead of Southwind Metric. He will leave from post one on Friday with McCarthy in the bike.
“He’s always been very nice,” said Daley. “He’s a very strong horse. He’s got a lot of power to him. I don’t think we’ve seen anywhere near the best of him yet. He’s got a lot more to give, I think.”
Daley trains the son of Muscle Hill-Sigilwig for owners Patricia Stable, Joe Sbrocco & JAF Racing, Allister Stables and Caviart Farms. He was purchased for $200,000 at the Lexington Selected Yearling Sale.
“For us, it was a lot of money; we don’t usually go in those numbers,” said Daley. “I don’t want to over-race him. I think he’ll be a better three-year-old. I don’t want him to have more than about eight starts. If everything goes to plan, which it never does, we’ll take him to Kentucky for two and then the Breeders Crown for two and that’s probably it.”
In the final for two-year-old female pacers, Daley-trained Miraculous Deo will take on a field that includes 2-1 favourite Pulp Fiction, who is undefeated in four starts for trainer Michael Hall. Miraculous Deo, who finished second in her elimination, will start from post seven with driver Brian Sears and is 5-1. She has hit the board in five of six races, winning one.
“If she happened to trip out, she’s good enough to win it,” Daley said about Deo Volente Farms’ homebred daughter of Stay Hungry-Worldly Beauty. “I think she’ll go with all of those.”
In the final for freshman male pacers, Daley will send out longshot Avellino for breeder/owner Anthony Monica. The gelding, a son of Lazarus N-Raise Your Glass, has one win in three starts. He will leave from post seven with driver McCarthy.
“Realistically, we’re just looking for a piece,” said Daley. “We liked him early, then the first time I qualified him, he lost the plot. But he’s heading in the right direction now.”
Newsroom (Always B Miki-Well Hello There) is the 3-5 favourite in the race. He is four-for-four for trainer Joe Holloway and driver David Miller and will start from post five.
In the remaining NJCS finals on Friday, Air Power (Muscle Hill-Beyond Blue) is 9-2 on the morning line in the race for three-year-old male trotters, third choice behind 2-1 favourite Oh Well (Muscle Hill-Fine Tuned Lady) and Celebrity Bambino (Muscle Hill-Celebrity Ruth) at 5-2. Secret Volo (Walner-Secret Serenity) gets the 5-2 nod among three-year-old female trotters.
Marcus Melander trains Air Power, Oh Well and Secret Volo. Ron Burke trains Celebrity Bambino.
Racing begins at 6:20 p.m. (EDT) at The Meadowlands. For a free TrackMaster program for the Big M's Friday card, click here.
(USTA)