stakes Recaps

By Tim Bojarski

After two of the best trotters in North America hooked up in an epic fourth quarter match race, It’s Academic successfully defended his title by winning his second straight $250,000 Spirit of Massachusetts Trot at Plainridge Park on Sunday (July 21) afternoon.

After a three-horse tussle off the gate, Logan Park (Doug McNair) found his way to the front in a blistering :25.4. With Chapercraz (Yannick Gingras) in the pocket and Take All Comers (Todd McCarthy) sitting third, Logan Park kept the mile moving with a :54.1 half. At that station, Miller called on It’s Academic and the pair rolled out from fourth and made their way towards the leader.

It’s Academic drew alongside Logan Park at three-quarters and it was on from there between the 2023 older trotters of the year from the U.S. and Canada. Logan Park and It’s Academic matched strides around the final bend and into the stretch, but neither had gotten a clear advantage. However, as they moved into deep stretch, It’s Academic swelled up and trotted away from Logan Park while keeping stablemate Chapercraz at bay to win by a length in 1:51.2.

It’s Academic joins Manchego as the only two-time and back-to-back winners of the Spirit of Massachusetts Trot.

It was the first win in only two 2024 starts for It’s Academic ($8.00) who has now gone over $2.4 million in lifetime earnings. The 7-year-old son of Uncle Peter-Annapolis is owned by Bradley Grant and trained by Ron Burke.

It’s Academic was the second win of the day for Miller.

After being parked out the entire mile, It's Academic ran down his competition late to win the $250,000 Spirit of Massachusetts Trot at Plainridge Park on Sunday afternoon (July 23).

Balenciaga (Mark Macdonald) shot right to the front and led to the quarter in :27.1. But Rattle My Cage (Ake Svanstedt) was moving on the outside and crossed over to the lead as the race passed the stands. With a new leader in place, Asteroid (Dexter Dunn) and It's Academic (David Miller), who had been trotting on the outside since the start, were working their way to the front. At three-quarters, Asteroid took the lead from Rattle My Cage, leaving It's Academic still in the breeze. Asteroid and It's Academic trotted together around the far turn and into the stretch, where the pocket-sitting Rattle My Cage joined the fray heading for home. From the pylons out, Rattle My Cage, Asteroid and It's Academic were in a tight pack and the race was anyone's to win. But It's Academic continued to grind and got the lead just before the line to win by a neck in 1:51.4.

Millionaire Alrajah One IT followed up his impressive Crawford Farms victory at The Meadowlands with an equally impressive victory in the $250,000 Spirit of Massachusetts Trot, winning in 1:50.3 to set a new track record for older trotting horses as well as a new lifetime mark Monday (July 25) at Plainridge Park.

Alrajah One IT (Dexter Dunn) got away sixth while It’s Academic (Yannick Gingras) took the field to the quarter in :26.1. But that lead would be short lived as Forbidden Trade (Mark Macdonald) was rolling up the outside to gain the lead by the half in :54.2. Heading around turn two, Lovedbythemasses (Tim Tetrick) pulled from fourth and was flying outside with Alrajah One IT on his back.

Lovedbythemasses cleared at three-quarters and Alrajah One IT stayed outside putting the pressure on the leader all around the last turn. When they straightened for home, Alrahah One IT swelled up and trotted away to a 1-3/4 length victory in 1:50.3.

“Post nine is never easy, but he makes it easy. He followed his cover through the turn and when he got clear he kind of cruised home,” said Dunn. “He does all the hard work and makes my job easy.”

It was the third consecutive Spirit of Massachusetts Trot driving victory for Dunn who won the last two with Manchego. Alrajah One IT’s win time replaced the 1:51.3 track record that Guardian Angel AS set in the 2019 Spirit of Massachusetts.

Alrahah One IT remains undefeated in North America after his second straight win and it pushed his lifetime earnings to $1,376,807 for owner Scuderia My Horse. Ake Svanstedt trains the 6-year-old record setter.

The Spirit trot saw the return of Manchego, who set a world record time of 1:49.3 at Plainridge Park last year in the same event. The Nancy Takter-trained champion trotting mare won the stake again on Sunday, but not without a serious challenge from Lindy The Great.

 Dexter Dunn floated Manchego off the gate and battled Lindy The Great (Andy Miller) for the lead, gaining control in a solid :26.4 quarter. The six horse field continued in single file around the clubhouse turn and up the backstretch where Forbidden Trade (Daniel Dube) pulled from third and tried to mount a challenge. But Manchego was trotting hard and opened up a two length lead at the top of the stretch. It was there that Miller tipped Lindy The Great and he came full of trot and conviction. Lindy The Great was in full flight and gaining with every stride while Dunn kept Manchego on task. The gap was closing in deep stretch but as they hit the line, Manchego finished what she started and won by ½ length ahead of Lindy The Great in 1:50. 

Manchego put on a display of devastating speed in a gate to wire victory in the $250,000 Spirit of Massachusetts Trot at Plainridge Park on Sunday (July 26) and set a new world record for aged trotting mares over a 5/8th’s mile track when she tripped the timer in 1:49.3.

Manchego broke her own world record of 1:50.1 set at Hollywood Dayton Raceway in 2019. The time also smashed the all-age track trotting record at Plainridge Park, besting the 1:51.2 set by JL Cruze in the 2017 Spirit Trot.

Guardian Angel As lived up to his billing in the $250,000 Spirit of Massachusetts Trot as he led every step of the way en route to an impressive victory, setting a new track record in the process.


Tim Tetrick wasted no time putting Guardian Angel As on the point, seating everyone else in the process before he hit the quarter in :26.4. Tetrick then slowed down the pace in the second panel to :28.3, forcing an outer flow that brought Weslynn Dancer (David Miller), La Grange A (Andy Miller) and Mambo Lindy (Drew Monti).


The field made its way up the backside and Weslynn Dancer eventually drew even with Guardian Angel As before they hit three-quarters in 1:22.4. There Tetrick tapped his horse twice and he shifted gears and opened up by a length. Down the lane Tetrick reminded Guardian Angel As his work wasn’t quite finished and he tapped the wheel disk a couple times more and the trotter closed it out on his own, winning by a length in 1:51.3.


The time was a new track record for aged trotting horses, smashing the standing mark of 1:53.4 set by Kodak Lindy in 2016 and was only one-fifth of a second off the all-time trotting mark of 1:51.2 set by JL Cruze in the inaugural edition of the Spirit of Massachusetts Trot back in 2017.

Guardian Angel As ($3.00) has now won five out of his last six races and the winner’s share of the purse boosted his 2019 earnings to $312,934 for owners Acl Stuteri Ab and Kjell Johansson. Anette Lorentzon trains Guardian Angel As.