Hilltop Helper: International Trot

Hilltop Helper: International Trot

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 oasis-bi-internationaltrot-com

Oasis Bi (Italy)

#3 in UET Rankings, behind only BOLD EAGLE and NUNCIO; 2nd in 2016 UET Trotting Masters Final and winner of this year’s Gran Premio Lotteria; 3rd in 2016 Prix D’Amerique (behind BOLD EAGLE and TIMOKO); 4th in 2015 Yonkers International Trot (from 10 hole); has been extremely impressive this year and has flashed sharp speed (Lotteria), closing foot (Prix D’Amerique) and toughness (Sundsvall); looks to be the one and should offer fair value.

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 resolve-ken-weingartner-photo-copy

Resolve (USA)

2nd behind NUNCIO in 2016 Elitloppet in superb effort and winner of this year’s Maple Leaf Trot, Cashman and Cutler; 0-3 lifetime at Yonkers (3rd in 2014 Yonkers Trot); draws in a good spot and has proven himself capable of taking air, if necessary; Åke has become very acquainted with the Hilltop this year, and this one’s loaded 2016 resume stamps him as deserving favorite, particularly with favorable draw.

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 obrigado_scd_hilltrot_2n1a3804-copy

Obrigado (USA)

Brilliant 2016 campaign, with wins in the Maxie Lee, Charlie Hill, Cleveland Trotting Classic, Crawford Farms and Dayton Trotting Derby; 5-14 at Yonkers lifetime, including 4th in 2014 Yonkers International Trot Preview (as 4YO) bad post may force him to have to sit on outer rim throughout, but he’s very ratable and will fire late as usual for the always potent Kelley–MacDonald combo.

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 hannelore-hanover-mh2

Hannelore Hanover (USA)

Super mare is now 16-18 in 2016, including wins in Centaur, Hambletonian Maturity and Armbro Flight; was gutty second in the Maple Leaf; makes 1st start on half-mile, but lands rail, has plenty of speed and distance should not be an issue; it’s always dangerous to go against Burke-Gingras in a big spot.

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 ontrackpiraten

On Track Piraten (Sweden)

#9 in UET Rankings; 1st up in 2015 edition (after early 3-wide move from 6 hole) and tired late; two Group I seconds this year; impressive and imposing gelding is severely compromised by post and is coming off rare break in UET Final; his ability and the presence of the great Örjan Kihlström, who drove OASIS BI last year and COMMANDER CROWE in 2014 Preview, still make him one to use underneath at a juicy price.

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 flanagan-memory-2015

Flanagan Memory (Canada)

Winner of last Sunday’s Allerage Farms Open Trot; 2nd in this year’s Cutler and winner of last year’s Cashman; dominant competing against the best at Mohawk; another making his small-track debut; does not have big speed so he’ll need to manufacture trip, but having Yonkers’ own Brian Sears aboard is an obvious plus.

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BBS Sugarlight (Norway)  

Superb year in 2015 (#1 in UET Rankings) and recently set track record in Halmstad, Sweden; has not been as successful against top competition this year; but if Halmstad effort can be duplicated, he could be a factor despite poor draw for Vidar Hop, a winner of over 4,000 races.

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explosive-de-vie

Explosive de Vie (Sweden) 

Solid 2nd behind NUNCIO in 2016 Jubileumspokalen in an impressive effort and 5th in 2016 UET Trotting Masters Final; unfortunately he gets the last slot in the field and that will make things difficult; may be able to save ground and rally late for small check.

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Samedi 10 Janvier 2015;Paris-vincennes;PRIX DE CROIX - CE - G2 - QUINTE + ;Tuomas KORVENOJA;Ecurie OY TROT AB & KOTIHALLI OY (FIN);SCOOPDYGA -

Jonesy (Finland)

Winner of 2014 Finnish Derby and recent winner of the Finnish Championship with a very impressive effort on the outer rim the whole race and a late winning surge; will need to take a step forward to be an exotics factor, but he still merits respect from this spot; driver-trainer Tuomas Korvenoja has twice been named top trainer in Finland.

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 tano-bork

Tano Bork (Denmark)

Winner of 3YO European Championship in 2013 and is 3-3 this year in Monte (Racing Under Saddle) competition; Denmark entrant will need to work out trip with challenging 2nd tier draw, but John Campbell knows how to win the big races; repeat of 1992 Euro?

Belmont–Yonkers Double Play:  $10  4 with 2&5&6 = $30 $5  2&4 with 2&5&6 = $30

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