Division title up for grabs in Michigan Futurity

Hour By Hour can clinch his division's title with a victory in the Michigan Futurity at Pinnacle Race Course.
After Hour By Hour and Prince of Paulie swapped finishing positions in their two previous meetings, Michigan’s two-year-old male division was thrown into a stalemate.
The pair will face off against a full field of 12 in the one mile rubber match to decide the crop’s top runner in Saturday’s $50,000 Michigan Futurity at Pinnacle Race Course.
Hour By Hour got the best of his rival during their most recent meeting in the Oct. 3 Michigan Sires Juvenile at Pinnacle. The Elusive Hour colt took his usual front-running path to the finish in that race to prevail by three lengths. Hour By Hour is owned Valerie Irvine and Laura Jackson and is trained by James Jackson. Federico Mata will retain the mount following his win in the Sire Stakes.
Prince of Paulie staked his claim to the two-year-old male title in the Sept. 12 Patrick Wood Stakes at Pinnacle. The Meadow Prayer gelding followed up with a third place finish in the Sire Stakes, his most recent start. J.J. Delgado will ride Prince of Paulie for owner John Mack and trainer Richard Rettele.
Because Hour By Hour and Prince of Paulie both favor front-running styles, the two could find each other battling for the lead in the race’s early goings. If that happens, a horse who has shown some tactical speed could take advantage of the situation. Power of Titus moved up from well back to finish a length behind Prince of Paulie in the Patrick Wood and could benefit from the added distance. The Secret Romeo colt took a step back in the Sire Stakes, with a fifth place finish in his most recent start. He is owned and trained by Del Waite. Mike Roll will pick up the mount aboard Power of Titus.
#. Horse / Jockey / Trainer / Odds
1. Hour By Hour / F Mata / J R Jackson / 5-2
2. A Love Away / No Rider / R D Allen, Sr. / 30-1
3. Sahmmy Falls / G Laurente / S M Spiess / 20-1
4. Geta Ticket / A O Stanley / D Kueffner / 6-1
5. Terko Service / W A Barnett / R D Allen, Sr. / 30-1
6. Dream Victory / A A Marin / J R Jackson / 5-1
7. Ready To Tango / A Ortiz / L R Uelmen / 15-1
8. Power of Titus / M Roll / D D Waite / 10-1
9. Sunny Stripe / No Rider / R M Gorham / 20-1
10. Meadow Magic / J Skerrett / J R Jackson / 9-2
11. Prince of Paulie / J J Delgado / R J Rettele / 4-1
12. Wild Alex / J M Camejo / A Macias / 30-1
Stakes runners-up square off in Michigan Juvenile Fillies

Top Touch will shoot for her first stakes score in the Michigan Juvenile Fillies at Pinnacle Race Course.
With likely division champion Hustle Now taking a well-deserved break, the two horses who finished behind her in this year’s stakes races will take center stage in Saturday’s one mile $50,000 Michigan Juvenile Fillies at Pinnacle Race Course.
Top Touch never got a chance to redeem herself for her second place finish in Sept. 12 Sickle’s Image Stakes because she was not eligible for the Sire Stakes. In the Sickle’s Image, the Touch Gold filly battled down the stretch with Hustle Now and begrudgingly gave way as the wire approached. Top Touch is owned by Charlie Williams and trained by Sandra Adkins. Alexis Ortiz will be in the irons.
De La Crem was a mild surprise in the Oct. 3 Sire Stakes, with a runner-up finish at odds of 15.20-to-one. The Island Storm filly moved up from the middle of the pack to come within a length and a half of Hustle Now, but the leader’s closing kick was too much for the field to handle. Bob Gorham trains De La Crem for Mast Thoroughbreds LLC. Regular rider Jeffrey Skerrett will have the assignment.
Also entered is the only filly to have started in both her division’s stakes races this year, Fortune in Gold. The Secret Romeo filly comes off a late-gaining third place finish in the Sire Stakes. J.J. Delgado will ride Fortune in Gold for owner Steve Prain and trainer Dave Kueffner.
#. Horse / Jockey / Trainer / Odds
1. Electric Venus / A O Stanley / R R Russell / 8-1
2. Fortune in Gold / J J Delgado / D Kueffner / 4-1
3. Maximimi / F Mata / R M Gorham / 12-1
4. Itsabouttimeiz / A A Marin / D D Waite / 20-1
5. Top Touch / A Ortiz / S M Adkins / 7-5
6. De La Crem / J Skerrett / R M Gorham / 2-1
Michigan Notebook: April 30, 2009
Lots of goings on in Michigan racing this week…
– From the Michigan HBPA:
* I inserted the link to my post listing the contact information of the House Ag Appropriations Committee members. If you want to send along the form letters or write your own personal message, there is still time, but be quick abut it.
Also, the Michigan Harness Horsemen’s Association is organizing a “Horseman’s Rally” prior to the hearing. Interested parties should be at the State Capitol building on the corner of Capitol and Allegan in Lansing at 9 a.m. Here is the information from the MHHA website.
If everything goes to plan, I intend to be at this hearing and will report back if anything significant comes from it. Also, be sure to keep an eye on my Twitter feed or check out the Claim Box on the right side of the page next Thursday for live updates.
– Pinnacle Race Course recently released its stakes schedule for the 2009 meet. For a pdf of the schedule, click here.
Here’s what I like and don’t like about what I see…
What I like is Pinnacle’s decision to package several of its stakes races together to give itself some marketable days of racing. If Pinnacle follows through and properly advertises these days and/or gives them killer promotions, it could lead to a nice boost in attendance and handle. One of the popular ideas to revive public interest in the racing product is to put out more “big race days.” With this, Pinnacle is taking a step in the right direction.
What I don’t like are the estimated purses for the Michigan Sire Stakes, the state’s marquee series of races for Michigan-sired horses. Two years ago, the Sire Stakes races were good for $120,000 a piece for each of the six divisions. This year, they’re slated to offer $50,000, blacktype races by the skin of their teeth and no bigger than any other race on the stakes calendar.
Because the Sire Stakes purses are partially funded by the state, the final purses could fluctuate depending on how things go with the budget situation. Either way, the fact that purses this low are even in the discussion is an unsettling notion.
As I have noted several times in the past, the worst thing a new track can do is give people a reason to leave, be it fans or horsemen. Indiana’s purses are going to grow. Pennsylvania’s are already massive. It was already getting harder and harder to justify sticking around before the potential cut in the state’s biggest races. This could make it that much harder. While the dire status of the Sire Stakes purses is not entirely the fault of Pinnacle Race Course, it will be the track that suffers because of it.
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Filed under Commentary, Mount Pleasant Meadows, Pinnacle Race Course, Politics
Tagged as Horsemen's Rally, House Appropriations Subcommittee on Agriculture, Michigan Harness Horsemen's Association, Michigan HBPA, Mount Pleasant Meadows, Pinnacle Race Course, Sire Stakes, Stakes Races