Four-year-olds shine at Oak Grove

By Kimberly French for the Kentucky Harness Association

Lexington, KY — On Tuesday (June 21) at Oak Grove Racing, Gaming & Hotel 4-year-old trotter and pacers strutted their stuff over the Bluegrass oval in the $50,000 second leg of the Kentucky-bred series. Winners Kildare King, Blue Diamond Eyes, Komodo Beach and Beltassima delivered on an exceptionally hot day.

Kildare King (Yannick Gingras) triumphed in gate-to-wire fashion in the first contest, a non-wagering event, over his stablemate Flemsteen (Andrew McCarthy). Mon Amour (Scott Zeron) was third.

A son of Trixton-Exclusivity, Kildare King has now earned more than $135,000 in his career for owner/breeder Robert Goodman of Lexington, Ky.

The gelding is trained by Chris Beaver and tripped the timer in 1:53.3.

Track-record holder Blue Diamond Eyes (Gingras) illustrated her affinity for the five-eighths track by taking things in her own hooves at the start. The defending Kentucky champion led at every pole to record a victory in 1:50. 1 over Classicist (McCarthy) and High Minded (Zeron) as the heavy favorite in the first race.

Blue Diamond Eyes is trained by Hall of Famer Ron Burke. The daughter of Captaintreacherous-Aria Hanover now has collected more than $1.2 million in purse money for owners Thomas and Scott Dillion.

Komodo Beach (McCarthy) sailed to the wire winning his $50,000 leg over Mad Man Hill (Todd Warren) and Caviart Lotus (Tony Hall) in 1:49.

Komodo Beach is trained by Edward Gannon Jr, owned by Morrison Stables and was bred by Lindy Farms of Connecticut.

The heat did not slow down Beltassima (McCarthy). The daughter of Trixton-Beltane Hanover improved her 2021 record to two-for-two with her pilot confidently holding the lines. Last year’s New Jersey Sire Stakes champion was second in the $250,000 Kentucky Championship Series final last year.

Beltassima is approaching the $400,000 mark in purse money. She is trained by Tony Alagna, owned by Crawford Farms and was bred by D Farms of Hustonville, Pa.

The $50,000 third and fourth legs of the 4-year-old series take place on June 28 and July 12. The $150,000 final is scheduled for July 19.