Monday's $331,000 Cane Pace Final May Decide Number Of Jug Starters

By Tom White
8/29/03

Since no clear cut favorite has emerged for the $550,000 Little Brown Jug, does this suggest a larger than normal number of entries? Lack of consistency, injuries or bad racing luck have made this 58th renewal tough to figure.

Perhaps Racing Secretary Tom Wright will need to invoke the "30 rule" which states that if more than 30 horses declare in to start, only the 30 horses with the highest lifetime earnings will be allowed to start. (All paid in fees will be refunded to those not permitted to start).

Next up in this topsy turvy season is Monday afternoon's $331,000 Cane Pace Final over Freehold Raceway's half-mile track. The Cane Pace is the first jewel of the Pacing Triple Crown followed by the Little Brown Jug on September 18 and the Messenger Pace on October 18 at The Meadows. All eight starters are also eligible to the Little Brown Jug.

Allamerican Native drew the coveted number one post position and was immediately installed as the 7-5 morning line favorite. The 2002 juvenile pacing colt champion set all the fractions and recorded an easy, 1:53.2 victory in his Cane elimination with John Campbell at the reins. The son of Presidential Ball, trained by Mark Capone, has won four of his six starts this year and has banked $288,917 in purse money for owners David Scharf, Jerry Silva and Willie Tomlin, all of New York. The colt's total winnings are over $1,230,000.

Allamerican Native, a $70,000 Harrisburg Sale yearling, dead-heated for second behind Yankee Cruiser in the North America Cup and failed to qualify for the Meadowlands Pace when he finished fourth in his elimination. He was also scratched sick from both the Oliver Wendell Holmes and Adios Pace.

The 5-2 second choice on the morning line is Peter Pan Stables' No Pan Intended. David Miller drove the Pacific Fella colt to an impressive 1:53.3 win in the other Cane Elimination last week. No Pan Intended sports an 8-2-0 across the board record in 11 races this year and has $309,659 in earnings. No Pan Intended, a $150,000 Tattersalls Sale yearling, won the Art Rooney Final on July 26 at Yonkers, also a half-mile track. The Pepper Pike, Ohio-owned colt will start from post number five.

Following Monday's Cane Pace Final there is only one more weekend of racing before owners must decide whether to pay the $6,000 Jug starting fee. The final prep races, all scheduled for Saturday, September 6, are the $345,000 Simcoe at Mohawk Raceway in Ontario; $250,000 Jug Preview at Scioto Downs; $100,000 Pennsylvania Championship at Pocono Downs; and the $60,000 New Jersey Sires Stakes at Freehold.

The field for the Cane Pace Final in post position order: