Fox Valley Gemini’s driver Casey Leonard can only look over and see that Ponda’s Prospect (Ridge Warren) is about to win the July 10th Open Pace. The two Terry Leonard trained stablemates will tangle again in tonight’s feature race. (Four Footed Fotos)

For the first time since the start of the 2020 Hawthorne Standardbred meeting back in February a horse not named Fox Valley Gemini or Castle Flight tonight will defend the role as the kingpin of the aged pacing division.

That honor belongs to Ponda’s Prospect and his driver Ridge Warren. In the last Open Pace at the meet contested two weeks ago, the sometimes overlooked Terry Leonard trained gelding showed his heels to his more renowned stable-mate Fox Valley Gemini with a neck triumph at 15-1 odds.

Ponda’s Prospect’s 1:51 flat clocking ended the four race Open winning streak of the two-time ICF Harness Horse of the Year. While Ponda’s Prospect isn’t anywhere near Fox Valley Gemini’s amazing 82.5 per cent lifetime winning percentage at Hawthorne, the five-year-old Shadyshark Hanover gelding definitely has a fondness for Hawthorne’s big track

Since acquired by the Illinois quartet of Dandy Racing Stable (Glenview), FT Racing Stable (Glenview), Peter Kouchis, Palos Hills) and Terry Leonard (Harvard), in 2018, Ponda’s Prospect has made an even dozen visits at the Hawthorne’s Winner’s Circle and five have come after Open victories

Ponda’s Prospect July 17th victory wasn’t his first Open win with Ridge Warren in the sulky. Warren won a Hawthorne Open Ponda’s Prospect in the summer of 2018 when Ridge was driving the horse on pretty much on a semi-regular basis.

Ponda’s Prospect usually comes from out of it, and sometimes he’s too far out of it to be success. That wasn’t the case last week when the horse enjoyed a two-hole trip when left from the six-post.

A smiling Brando Bates gave the track photographer a “thumbs up” after notching his 1,000 career driving victory last Sunday with the ICF 3-year-old trotting filly Fox Valley Extacy in a leg of the Beulah Dygert stake series. (Four Footed Fotos)

“The horse never leaves but I thought last week if I could get ahead of the one and two horses early on we might get to race up close. As it turned out we sat in the pocket throughout and he was still pacing hard in the late going like he always does.

“Ponda’s Prospect is a good horse and I’m thankful I’ve had the opportunity to drive him. He’s sharp now,” added Ridge, who is now also driving at The Meadows in Pennsylvania Mondays, Tuesdays, and Wednesday.

A victory in a Hawthorne Open on the pace or the trot regularly means the winning horse will draw for the outside looking in the next time he or she goes to the gate in the $10,500 uppermost overnight event, and that’s the situation again tonight.

Ponda’s Prospect landed the seven post in the eight horse feature field with “Gemini” getting the eight after being handicapped with the10-hole in his last pair of Hawthorne Open outings.

Shark Play (Kyle Wilfong), Toxic Rock (Cornarius Stewart) and Better Watch Out (Tyler Shehan), three pacers new to the local Open, were drawn into the 1, 2 and 3 posts, in that order. The 4, 5 and 6 went to On Duty (Jim Lackey), When You Dance (Todd Warren) and Jet Airway (Bobby Smolin), respectively.

Milestone for Bates: Congratulations to driver Brandon Bates who recorded his 1,000th career dash winner on Sunday at the lines of the ICF trotting filly Fox Valley Extacy in a third leg of the $15,000 Beulah Dygert trotting series.

The a 44-year-old Bates, known for his patience in a racing bike, rallied the Hector Herrera trained filly past the even-money favorited Lous Abigail, propelling Fox Valley Extacy to the top spot in the current Beulah Dygert point standings.

Bates began this season competing at Hawthorne before the Covid-19 outbreak put a halt to harness racing throughout the country. After the nationwide restart Brandon went to Hoosier Park, competing in Indiana on Tuesdays through Saturdays and coming back to drive at Hawthorne on Sundays.

Brandon has driven more than 100 winners the past four seasons and is a cinch to so again in 2020.

By Mike Paradise

It’s round three of the Plum Peachy stake series tonight and the first thing you’ll notice when the sixth race first $15,000 event rolls around is that Casey Leonard is driving the very likely post time favorite Fox Valley Exploit, replacing the talented filly’s trainer and co-owner Kyle Husted.

The 28-year-old Husted was one of three drivers who were sent tumbling down on the racetrack when a spill occurred last Friday night. The other two unseated drivers Casey Leonard and Tyler Shehan suffered bumps and bruises but were back driving the next evening.

However, Husted is still sidelined but says “I’m feeling better every day.”

“I landed on my left knee when I went down and it’s the same knee I had reconstructed surgery on over the winter. It’s still pretty sore. The hospital people told me to see a specialist to determine if it’s just banged up or if another surgery is needed. I plan on see one Monday. Hopefully it’s just a sprain and I’ll be back driving soon.”

Fox Valley Exploit will be back in action Saturday night when she tries to stay unbeaten as a three-year-old in a $15,000 division of the Plum Peachy stake. Her regular driver(and trainer) Kyle Husted has been sidelined and Casey Leonard be at the lines of the filly tonight. (Four Footed Fotos)

While Husted’s fitness currently is not where he would like it to be his filly Fox Valley Exploit has been healthy and hearty, going three-for-three at the meet with a trio of state-bred stake triumphs.

No Peachy Surprises: Thus far at the meet the first two rounds of the Plum Peachy have gone as anticipated.

Last season’s ICF Filly Pacer of the Year Fox Valley Exploit was anticipated to be a strong candidate to her march to the Night of Champions and she’s been just that for the Kyle Husted stable and in some observers eyes, even better than excepted.

The Sportsmaster filly has been perfect, a confident winner in the Violet pace and both rounds of the Plum Peachy. Fox Valley Exploit has hauled in over $35,000 in her first trio of outings for Husted, who shares ownership of the filly with Michigander Dave Bringham. “Exploit” was sent off at overwhelming 1 to 9 odds in the June 27th Plum Peachy and returned a meager $2.10 mutuel.

The filly’s rivals Sleazy Gal and Sign Her Up had solid freshman campaigns and were projected to be Fox Valley Exploit’s strongest challengers in 2020 and they are living up to that billing.

Sleazy Gal has racked up 60 series points, the second best total among Plum Peachy eligible fillies with a victory and a third place finish. Sign Her Up, second best in last year’s Incredible Tillie Night of Champions showdown, follows with 50 points after consecutive stake series second place finishes.

Amazon Princess with 25 points and Style And Spirit with 20 currently occupy the fourth and fifth spots, respectively and a purse check finish tonight would solidify one, or both, to a starting berth on the Night of Champions. You’ll need a crystal ball to determine the possible remaining Plum Peachy finalists.

Top Three Square Off: Saturday’s first $15,000 Plum Peachy will see the three leading point earners in the standings square-off in the sixth race. They’ll leave from the three middle posts in the seven-horse field with Sleazy Gal (Kyle Wilfong) getting the three, Sign Her Up (Juan Franco) the four, and Fox Valley Exploit (Casey Leonard) starting from the five.

Umakeit Utakeit (pp1, Todd Warren), June Dale Gram (pp 2, Cordarius Stewart), Johnny’s Gal June (pp 6, Travis Seekman) and Style And Spirit (pp 7, Ridge Warren) are the longshot hopes.

While the eighth race second Plum Peachy doesn’t have the charisma of the first, there’s another $15,000 pot on the line and a chance for some fillies to make a lot of hay, and I don’t mean the kind they eat.

With 50 points going to the division’s first place finisher, 25 to the runner-up and an even dozen for the third horse, and so on, there is an opportunity for some gals to zoom up the point standings and maybe secure a starting berth in the Night of Champions final.

Here’s how the eighth race Plum Peachy will line-up: Dancin Eyes (Cornelius Cavett), Fox Valley Nia (Kyle Wilfong), Double Parked (Travis Seekman), Ashlees Fine Girl (Todd Warren), Amazon (Ridge Warren), Castielle (Casey Leonard) and Molly Hotspur (Cordarius Stewart).

Carey Results: He’zzz A Wise Sky $2.10) had no trouble winning last night’s first $15,000 Robert F. Carey stake series with a 1:53latc locking. Driver Bobby Smolin had the heavy favorite in fifth and last through the 57.2 first half and when asked for another gear, the Don Filomeno went from last to first in a quarter of a mile and was hand driven to the finish wire.

Western Perch (Kyle Wilfong) was second best, ending up one and one-half lengths behind the winner. Illini Force took third.

When the pre-stake favorite Fox Valley Ren was scratched due to sickness, the second Carey split suddenly became a wide-open affair. The Kimberly Roth trained Bagman ($10.40) came off the pace with driver Todd Warren and won the $15,000 event in 1:54.2, two full lengths ahead of runner-up Ryans Ambassador (Jim Molitor). The favorite RG’s Tracer was third, almost another two lengths behind.