Outside The Fire worked out a perfect pocket trip on the way to taking down Lexus Kody in the Friday night feature at The Meadowlands, a $25,000 high-end conditioned trot ...
EAST RUTHERFORD, NJ -- April 18, 2025 -- Outside The Fire worked out a perfect pocket trip on the way to taking down Lexus Kody in the Friday night feature at The Meadowlands, a $25,000 high-end conditioned trot.
The race shaped up as a great matchup between the two talented trotters. Outside The Fire, a winner of two of his last four for the Jeff Cullipher barn who was sent to the gate as the 3-5 favorite, taking on 2-1 second choice Lexus Kody, the ultra-talented speedball from Ron Burke, who is awfully good when flat, but has a nasty breaking habit, having gone off stride in half of his last six tries, with the other three resulting in walks down victory lane.
The race panned out predictably, with Outside The Fire leaving for position from post five in the seven-horse field. He actually had the top at the quarter in :27.4 before Lexus Kody, driven by 25-year-old Aussie James Herbertson, who will be at The Big M for the next five weeks to get a taste of American racing, took over and took the field past the half in :57.2 and three-quarters in 1:26.4. The track record holder for an older gelding by virtue of a 1:49.4 clocking last Hambletonian Day, Lexus Kody would be tough to beat after a middle half in :59.
But Outside The Fire was up to the challenge, because for Lexus Kody, it wasn’t his breaking problem that cost him the win, but instead, it was facing a horse who was simply better.
“He’s been in razor-sharp form,” said winning driver Johnathan Ahle. “So, I just figured, let’s see where we land and come when we have to.”
When we have to was approaching three-quarters, when Ahle, driving Outside The Fire for the first time, vacated the pocket to go after the leader.
“I wouldn’t say I was nervous,” said Ahle. “But the slow half didn’t please me at all.”
Outside The Fire collared Lexus Kody with about a sixteenth to go, and went on to win by 1 length in 1:53.1. On Higher Ground was third.
“The way mine felt around that last turn,” said Ahle. “He felt loaded with trot and I was confident.”
A 6-year-old gelded son of Cantab Hall-Light The Flame, Outside The Fire upped his lifetime stats to 25 wins from 84 starts, good for earnings of $374,068 for owners Pollack Racing LLC. He paid $3.40 to win.
A LITTLE MORE: A carryover of $5,569 led to a total pool of just over $22,000 in the 20-cent Pick Six, and after a sequence that saw winner’s odds of 9-5, 2-1, 7-2, 4-5, 5-1 and 3-1, winning tickets were exchanged for $2,181.64. … Veteran amateur driver David Glasser recorded his first career win racing against non-amateur pilots when he guided Urban Renewal ($12.20) to the winner’s circle in the second race. … All-source handle totaled $2,272,242 on the 14-race card. … Racing resumes Saturday at 6:20 p.m.
