Big Box Hanover (Uncle Peter) has been one of the top forces in the Open Trot at Saratoga Casino Hotel for the past few seasons. On Monday, the Larry Stalbaum trainee was at it again and went coast-to-coast to record his fourth victory in the local Open in 2025 and eighth win of the season overall. Flashing early speed in the $18,500 feature, Big Box Hanover cruised to the top and tapped the brakes early on. After moving to the front in 28 seconds, the eight year old slowed things down to reach the half in 58.4 while travelling unopposed. The favored But Why (Jimmy Devaux) powered up on the outside to give the leader his first test after checking in at three quarters in 1:27.4. That pair brought its battle into the stretch where they were joined by Up Helly AA (Chris Long) who got the two-hole trip behind Big Box Hanover who held off the pocket-sitter to score in 1:56.2. Up Helly AA was the runner-up while But Why earned the show spot for the third consecutive week in the Open. Leon Bailey piloted the winner for owner/trainer Larry Stalbaum who saw his Big Box Hanover win for the 60^th time in his career en route to more than $890,000 in earnings. The winner went off at odds of 6-1.

Live racing continues on Tuesday with a matinee that begins at 12pm.

Rose Run Xtra (Cash Hall) came from off the pace to win the Monday feature for the second consecutive week at Saratoga Casino Hotel. Monica Krist trains the six-year-old who recently returned from a layoff before landing in the Open Trot at the Spa. Following a second-place finish in his debut in the $18,500 feature, Rose Run Xtra prevailed last week (Sept 8) for the first time in the Open before drawing post seven for Monday’s try against the track’s top high-steppers. Driver Billy Dobson sat patiently in the early going with the 4-5 betting favorite while almost ten lengths off the lead at the opening quarter. Longshot Duke Lavictoire (Jordan Derue) cut the mile and travelled unopposed through a first half of 57.2 before checking in at three-quarters in 1:26.1. Rose Run Xtra steadily gained ground but was caught three-wide for the final quarter of a mile before surging late to prevail in 1:56.1 to complete his back-to-back jacks. Duke Lavictoire was the runner-up at odds of 16-1 while But Why (Jimmy Devaux) came on to be third despite drawing post eight for his try in the Open. Rose Run Xtra’s win was one of four on the day for Dobson who guided a pair of winners for Monica Krist and owner Rick Dobson whose Tiktok Roy just missed a new lifetime mark when he parlayed a pocket ride to a 1:57 score to upset the big favorite in his $9,200 race for trotters.

Rose Run Xtra (Cash Hall) won the Open Trot for the first time at Saratoga Casino Hotel on Monday afternoon. The Monica Krist trainee is still on the comeback trail after being lightly raced in the 2025 campaign. The six-year-old finished second in his Spa debut on August 25^th in the $18,500 Open before drawing post six for Monday’s try in the feature. Billy Dobson took back with the 9-5 betting favorite in a race that wound up with slow first-half fractions. Longshot Send It In Hanover (Wally Hennessey) coasted through a first lap in 59 seconds before facing his first challenge. In the meantime, Dobson revved up Rose Run Xtra and after three quarters went in 1:28, he was on the move to take over fourth but still with a lot of work to do. The classy Rose Run Xtra completed his late rally by surging in the stretch to score in 1:57.1. Send It In Hanover was the runner-up while dismissed at odds of 11-1 while But Why (Jimmy Devaux), who was coming off back-to-back jacks in the Open, closed from last to earn the show spot on Monday. Rose Run Xtra is owned by Rick Dobson of Howell, Michigan. The victory in the Open was one of three for reinsman Billy Dobson.

Live racing continues on Tuesday with a matinee that starts at 12pm. The card will feature eight New York Sire Stakes Excelsior Finals. There will be a Pick Five carryover of $3,493. The Pick Five begins in race one.

But Why prevailed in the Open Trot for the second consecutive week at Saratoga Casino Hotel. The Scott Mongeon trainee moved aggressively to the lead in Monday’s installment of the $18,500 feature. Quarter-moving to the front for reinsman Jimmy Devaux after a 28 second flat first quarter, But Why took the field through a half in 57.2. Rose Run Xtra (Billy Dobson) was making his Spa debut and after yielding to But Why in the early going, rode his coattails throughout. The leader was met with the challenge of the favored Big Box Hanover (Larry Stalbaum) but rebuffed that bid en route to a 1:55.3 victory, his fourth in the Open Trot this season and eleventh overall on the year. Rose Run Xtra was the runner-up in his Open debut while Big Box Hanover had to settle for third. But Why paid $6.30 to win as the race’s 2-1 second-choice in the wagering. But Why is owned by Steve and Laura Stewart. For Mongeon, it was the sixth training win in the Open Trot this season as his By The Book has recorded a pair of scores in the feature for high-steppers in ’25 after winning Horse of the Year honors in 2024. The victory in the Open was one of three on the card for Devaux.

Live racing continues on Tuesday with a matinee that begins at 12pm.

Sharp Seven (Chapter Seven-Lookin Sharp-Andover Hall) scored the biggest win of her young career at Saratoga Casino Hotel on Monday afternoon. The freshman filly prevailed in her $156,600 New York Sire Stakes race for two year olds when she went wire-to-wire to record the second victory of her young career. Jeff Gregory was in town to pilot a trio of George Ducharme trainees all of whom prevailed on the Monday matinee concluding with the big win from Sharp Seven who stopped the timer in 1:58.2 en route to more than doubling the earnings in her young career. The Ducharme-trained Makeittothebell and Elqueen tandem scored in their $20,000 NY Sire Stakes Excelsior races on the card preceding the Sharp Seven victory. Owned by Purple Haze Stables, Sharp Seven now owns two wins and two seconds in the six starts she’s made in her freshman campaign.

Mike Sardella | Saratoga Casino Hotel | Saratoga Springs, NY

Jessica Hallett photo

Ghostly Casper (Resolve) made his debut at Saratoga Casino Hotel a winning one on Monday afternoon. The Canadian invader was tasked with overcoming post position seven in a seven-horse $18,500 Open Trot and Jimmy Devaux got the call to sit behind the Sara Baillargeon-trained high-stepper. A six-figure earner in 2024, Ghostly Casper flashed early speed in his Spa debut and moved to the lead in a first quarter clocked in a fast 27.2. Devaux kept the five year old rolling as they coasted through a half in 56.3 before rattling off three-quarters in 1:25.3. Up Helly AA (Chris Long) was the first challenger to test Ghostly Casper but the bid was quickly thwarted by the invader who stopped the timer in 1:55.1 as a decisive two-length winner. Up Helly AA was the runner-up to the 2-5 betting favorite while pocket-sitter Send It In Hanover (Wally Hennessey) earned the show spot. Ghostly Casper’s win was his third of the season for owners Baillargeon, Davidson and Vena.

Mike Sardella | Saratoga Casino Hotel | Saratoga Springs, NY

Jessica Hallett photo

Send It In Hanover made his debut in the $16,000 Open Trot at Saratoga Casino Hotel on Monday afternoon. Wally Hennessey trains and drives the four year old who drew the rail for his first start against the track’s top high-steppers and went off at odds of 6-1 in the six-horse Open. Hennessey assumed the lead with Send It In Hanover who had hit the board in nine of ten starts in 2025 but was winless coming into his Monday try. Setting first-half fractions of 28.1 and 58.1 worked to the favor of Send It In Hanover before he was confronted. The youngster rebuffed his first and only legitimate challenge before holding strong in the stretch and reporting home a length winner in 1:56.4. Longshot Draco S (Jimmy Devaux) came on to finish second while Fringed (Dan Daley) earned the show spot. The winner paid $15 in the upset and led an exacta and triple that returned $102.50 and $440.50, respectively. Send It In Hanover, who gave Hennessey one of his three driving winners on the card, is owned by Paul O’Neil of Saratoga Springs.

Live racing continues on Tuesday with a first post time of 12pm.

The 2024 Horse of the Year at Saratoga Casino Hotel By The Book (Chapter Seven) won nine races in his award-winning campaign. Although the ’25 season hasn’t been quite as productive for the Scott Mongeon trainee thus far, the six year old trotter is still competing at a high level against the track’s top trotters. On Monday afternoon, By The Book drew the outside post for his try in the Open Trot but after a scratch, inherited post six. Driver Jay Randall was patient in the early going with the award-winning trotter who got away last in the $16,000 six-horse feature. The favored Duke Lavictoire (Wally Hennessey) set first-half fractions of 27.2 and 57.3 before By The Book made his move approaching the three-quarter pole. Climbing out of a hole of nearly ten lengths, By The Book took over the lead in the stretch before stopping the timer in 1:56.3 to record his second Open victory of the campaign. Duke Lavictoire was the runner-up while Draco S (Mark Beckwith) finished third in his local debut. By The Book, who is owned in partnership by Harrison, Barthelmas and Murray, paid $6.20 to win on Monday and led an exacta and triple that returned $15.20 and $107, respectively.  Randall piloted a pair of winners on the Monday card.

Live racing continues on Tuesday with a matinee that begins at 12pm.

With no Open Trot on the docket, a $13,000 trotting event served as the Monday afternoon feature at Saratoga Casino Hotel. But Why (Crazy Wow) drew the rail as he dropped out of the Open following a trio of disappointing starts in the regular Monday feature after enjoying a strong spring against the track’s top trotters. The Scott Mongeon-trained high-stepper was the 4-5 betting favorite and had Mark Beckwith at the controls as he yielded in the early going to fellow Open dropper Coventry Hall (Jacob Cutting) who set fast fractions of 27.4 and 56.4 in the first half. As But Why rode the coattails of the leader, Send It In Hanover (Wally Hennessey) took his shot on the outside of Coventry Hall who withstood the pressure from Send It In Hanover before succumbing to the bid in the passing lane from But Why who came on to win in 1:55.3. The victory was the eighth on the season in eighteen starts for But Why who led an exacta with Coventry Hall second that returned $12 while the triple rounded out by Send It In Hanover paid $17 (on a $2 wager). But Why is owned by Steve and Laura Stewart of Petersburgh, NY.

Live racing continues on Tuesday with a first post set for 12pm.

Up Helly Aa (Armbro Barrister) was the biggest longshot in the Open Trot contested on Monday afternoon at Saratoga Casino Hotel. The six year old was ignored in the wagering despite having scored in the previous Open on June 30^th at odds of 28-1. Coincidentally, the Jaymes McAssey-trained trotter again was dismissed at 28-1 when he drew post position four in Monday’s $16,000 feature. Billy Dobson sat behind Up Helly Aa who got away fifth in the six-horse Open and sat nearly eight lengths off the lead at the half mile pole. The upset-minded highstepper picked up the cover of the favored Dewey Arnold (Jimmy Devaux) who made steady progress in the second half on leader Coventry Hall (Jacob Cutting) who set eye-popping first-half fractions of 26.4 and 55.1. The closers surged around the final turn and Up Helly Aa tipped off the cover before storming home to score in 1:56.2 to spring the upset over Dewey Arnold and Coventry Hall who finished second and third, respectively. After paying $58.50 to win in last week’s upset, Up Helly Aa returned $58.00 in Monday’s repeat score.