Nightlife In dominates after surviving tough Sprintermästaren eliminations
by Thomas Hedlund
Four talented elimination winners advanced to Thursday’s (July 2) $240,000 Sprintermästaren final at Halmstad, but when the dust settled it was Nightlife In who proved he was in a league of his own.
The draw favored the elimination winners, with the four heat victors receiving the inside post positions for the championship. David Persson’s Nightlife In (Day Or Night In), however, was the last of those four to choose a post, yet still landed in the ideal spot and made the most of it.
The opening elimination produced perhaps the most eye-catching performance of the afternoon. Variegated (Chapter Seven), trained by Daniel Redén, rallied from fourth-over despite moderate fractions and unleashed a sustained three-wide move over the final three-eighths to score in 1:54.4. It was the colt’s first victory since arriving in Sweden.
Mon Amour d’Aurcy controlled the pace early with Gangster Vendil applying pressure first-over. The leader began to tire entering the stretch and eventually made a break after drifting down toward the pylons. Gangster Vendil briefly inherited the lead before Variegated powered past late.
“He’s a big horse and perhaps needed a few races before finding his best form,” driver Örjan Kihlström said. “Daniel felt he would race well today, and he certainly did.”
The second elimination belonged to Nightlife In, who once again displayed his trademark determination. Mellby Narrow blasted to the front for Daniel Wäjersten but surrendered the lead turning for home as Carl Johan Jepson angled Nightlife In to the outside. The son of Day Or Night In wore down the leader and prevailed in 1:54.0.
“He’s always been a talented horse, and I was very pleased with his effort,” Jepson said.
The third elimination featured one of the afternoon’s biggest disappointments when heavily favored Blank made an early break after being forced to steady four-wide into the first turn, ending his chances almost immediately.
After Ghirardelli yielded the lead to Mountcastle, the pace became demanding enough that the pacesetter weakened turning for home. That opened the door for Lion Express (Readly Express), who advanced first-over and proved best in 1:53.4. Nicolai Hanover closed strongly for second ahead of Ghirardelli.
Italian standout Golden Boy (Maharajah) made the final elimination look easy. Once Ivanisevic broke at the start, Alessandro Gocciadoro sent his colt directly to the front, dictated the pace throughout, and coasted home in 1:54.3. Urban Profile rallied well for second, while Moonshot finished third but failed to qualify for the final on earnings.
“He raced very well, and more importantly he left the gate better than usual,” Gocciadoro said. “He’s definitely one of the better horses in the final.”
The championship itself turned into a tactical affair.
Variegated fired off the rail but had no answer for Nightlife In’s superior early speed into the first turn. Once Jepson secured the lead, Lion Express settled first-over and the pace slowed dramatically through the middle stages — similar to the filly division final held earlier on the card.
That left late-closing contenders Golden Boy and Wise Guy with difficult assignments after launching from third- and fourth-over, respectively, down the backstretch.
Neither could threaten the leader.
Nightlife In drew away impressively through the lane to capture the Sprintermästaren final in 1:54.1, giving trainer Persson one of the biggest victories of his career.
“It’s always easy to say afterward, but we knew we had the horse in top form,” Persson said. “He toyed with them today. I’ve had a feeling all day this could happen. What a horse we have.”
Jepson, who also won the prestigious event a year ago with Far Wise As, admitted this victory carried special meaning.
“This is an incredible feeling,” he said. “I’m proud of everyone who has worked with this horse. Things hadn’t gone perfectly leading into today, but we purposely waited to race him barefoot because we believed this was the right spot. He left the gate sharply, felt terrific throughout, and fought all the way to the wire. I actually threw my whip in celebration for the first time in my career. It’s hard not to get emotional. This means a lot to both David and me.”
Variegated finished a solid second after enjoying a perfect pocket trip behind the winner, while Golden Boy rallied for third ahead of Wise Guy.
GOURMET D’ARC GIVES HAGOORT AND BAKKER THIRD STOSPRINTERN CROWN IN FIVE YEARS
The combination of Paul Hagoort and Robin Bakker has become synonymous with success in the $200,000 Stosprintern, and on Thursday (July 2) at Halmstad they captured the prestigious event for the third time in five years as Gourmet d’Arc delivered a determined first-over victory.
The complexion of the race changed before the wings folded when one of the favorites, Milady Josselyn, got out of position behind the gate and made a break prior to the start.
That allowed Mimosa To Martini (Gimpanzee), driven by Mats E. Djuse, to protect the rail and control the pace. Djuse was able to back the tempo down significantly after the opening quarter, and midway through the mile the field remained in single file as the leader enjoyed a comfortable breather before the pace intensified entering the final turn.
Meanwhile, Bakker had moved Gourmet d’Arc (Six Pack) first-over after less than a quarter-mile and patiently stalked the pacesetter without applying sustained pressure until the final bend.
Turning for home, the race became a two-horse battle.
Gourmet d’Arc gradually wore down the game leader through the stretch to score convincingly in 1:53.3, recording her 10th victory from just 14 lifetime starts.
“The third one!” Bakker said with a smile after the race. “I’m so happy for the owners. Things haven’t gone our way in previous finals with her, so we changed the preparation this time. I could see Mats didn’t have much horse left entering the final turn, and I never even had to pull the ear plugs.”
Mimosa To Martini held well for second, while Princessofthedawn (Maharajah), trained by André Eklundh, finished third.
The victory further strengthened Hagoort and Bakker’s remarkable recent record in the Stosprintern. They previously won the race with Chebba Mil in 2022 and Julia Sisu in 2023, making Gourmet d’Arc their third champion in the last five editions.
EUROPEAN STARS HEADLINE ULF THORESEN GRAND INTERNATIONAL
Some of Europe’s biggest trotting stars will be in action today (July 5) at Jarlsberg as the Norwegian oval hosts the $162,500 Ulf Thoresen Grand International, one of Scandinavia’s premier summer events.
Leading the field is Don Fanucci Zet (Hard Livin), who makes his first start since finishing fifth in the final of Sweden’s prestigious Elitlopp at the end of May. Trainer Daniel Redén also sends Kentucky River (Father Patrick), giving his stable a formidable two-horse entry in the international feature.
The Redén duo will face a deep field that includes Daim Brodda (Readly Express), Betting Pacer (Maharajah), Italian standout Executiv Ek (Face Time Bourbon), and Danish star Get A Wish (Wishing Stone).
Today’s Jarlsberg card is packed with quality races, but the Ulf Thoresen Grand International is unquestionably the centerpiece.
The race honors legendary Norwegian reinsman Thoresen, who passed away in July 1992 at the age of 42. Widely regarded as one of the greatest drivers in harness racing history, Thoresen captured the World Driving Championship four times and enjoyed an unforgettable 1986 season, winning both the Hambletonian with Nuclear Kosmos and the International Trot at Roosevelt Raceway with Habib.
$162,500 ULF THORESEN GRAND INTERNATIONAL
2,100 meters / approximately 1.3 miles
Horse (Driver)
Get A Wish (Robert Bergh)
Kentucky River (Magnus A. Djuse)
Executiv Ek (Alessandro Gocciadoro)
King Okay (Erlend Rennesvik)
Betting Pacer (Björn Goop)
Charron (Magnus Teien Gundersen)
Don Fanucci Zet (Örjan Kihlström)
Daim Brodda (Eirik Høitomt)
Before Takeoff (Daniel Wäjersten)
Powwow (Lars Anvar Kolle)
