Jimmy Takter-trained horses dominate Breeders Crown, winning 6 of 12 races
A dozen divisions of Breeders Crown stakes races for each age, gait and gender, last of the major stakes of the year in harness racing, were contested at Woodbine Racetrack outside Toronto on Saturday night for a total of $5.8 million in purses. .
Trainer Jimmy Takter won fully half of those races, setting a record for the stakes series. He hit the half dozen mark with the final race of the night, an open length win by Always B Miki and driver David Miller in the $400,000 Breeders Crown for older pacers.
Always B Miki, whose three-year-old career ended with a broken bone, needed nearly a year after surgery to recover, but he’s back with a vengeance as a four-year-old, winning with authority in 1:49.3. It was his third win in as many starts this year. JK Endofanera (Brett Miller) was second and Mach It So (Tim Tetick) was third.
“This is a thrill to sit behind a horse like this and feel his power,” said winning driver David Miller, who won five Crown races on the night, “You ask him and he goes.”
Hambletonian winner and 1-5 favorite Pinkman (Yannick Gingras), was overtaken just short of the wire by stablemate The Bank (David Miller) in the $500,000 Breeders Crown for three-year-old trotting colts. Both the winner and runner up are trained by Jimmy Takter. Muscle Diamond (John Campbell) was third. The Bank was driven by David Miller for the win in 1:54.3.
On the three-year-old pacing side, it was the first trip out of the state of Indiana for winner Freaky Feet Pete (Trace Tetrick), whose owners, Mary Jo and Marty Rheinheimer, paid $62,500 to supplement him to the $531,250 Crown, and it paid off with a late rush to the wire in 1:50. It was his 13th win in 15 starts this year; the runner-up was Artspeak (Scott Zeron) and Lost For Words (David Miller) was third.
Five-year-old trotting mare Bee A Magician took on a field of a half dozen older trotting mares in the $531,250 open trot, but she gave futile chase to Creatine and driver Johnny Takter, who won the race for his brother, the horse’s trainer, Jimmy Takter, wire to wire in 1:52.4.
Creatine’s owners, Big C Racing of Wellsville, PA also made a $62,500 supplemental payment to get the horse, who’s been racing in Europe much of the year, in to the Crown.
Bee A Magician, Brian Sears driving, made her bid for the lead with three eighths of a mile to go, but could not make up the needed ground and was fourth. Resolve (Ake Svanstadt) was second and Gural Hanover (Matt Kakaly) was third. The win put Creatine over the $2 million mark, with $2,087,516 to his credit.