Hamburg, NY --- Wisdom Tree and Tell Me A Joke each have a victory this season in the New York Sire Stakes for the 3-year-old filly pacers and they are the ones to beat in their respective divisions on Wednesday night (June 13) when the series arrives at Buffalo Raceway.
There will be two compact NYSS fields that will kick off the early daily double on the 10-race card. A field of four will tangle in the first division worth $56,900 while the second division carries a purse of $58,000 for the five entrants.
In the opener, Wisdom Tree comes to town finishing first or second in five of her six starts in 2018. A winner of $53,200 already this season, Wisdom Tree (Betterthancheddar-Wisdom) drew the four post for driver Kevin Cummings and has been tabbed as the even-money morning line choice.
Wisdom Tree, trained by Edward Hart, took the $59,100 NYSS bracket at Saratoga on May 27 by scoring a length triumph in 1:52.2. Last week at Tioga Downs, she finished a strong second in 1:50.3 despite starting from the eight post in a $40,600 division of the NYSS.
The main challenger could be Pelican Blue Chip (Rock N Roll Heaven-Feathery Fame) who gets the services of Jim Morrill Jr. from the pylons. She's earned a paycheck in her last two tries in the NYSS and could be primed for a big effort.
The other two in the field are Twin B Peaches (Mark MacDonald) and the Ron Burke-trained Betterthangraduate (Matt Kakaley).
Tell Me A Joke (Art Major-Camadian) headlines the second division and has been installed as an even-money morning line choice as well from the four spot on the starting grid.
Morrill, who'll be on the bike again with Tell Me A Joke, guided her to a gate-to-wire victory in the NYSS on June 3 at Tioga in 1:53.2, turning back Trigger Happy by a length. A winner three times in five appearances this season, Tell Me A Joke has $40,392 in the bank in 2018.
Jewels Forreal, another Burke trainee, drew the three post with Kakaley in the sulky. Last time out on June 3 at Tioga Downs, Jewels Forreal (So Surreal-Dandy's Jewel) made up 10 lengths during the race and finished third, just 1-1/2 lengths behind Tell Me A Joke. With a long stretch at Buffalo Raceway, Jewels Forreal could be a very formidable opponent.
The remainder of the field includes Checkered Past (MacDonald), Ms Cheesman (Scott Zeron) and Liplock (Nicholas Boyd).
The track record for the 3-year-old filly pacers is 1:53.3 set in 2015 by Mosquito Blue Chip. With five track standards either being tied or lowered last week at Buffalo Raceway, it's possible that the record book might have to be updated again.
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