Credit USTA/Mark Hall
On November 24, McWicked and pilot Brian Sears rolled home with a final quarter panel of :26.2 to collect the 7-year-old stallion’s fifth consecutive victory in the $350,000 TVG Open Pace final at The Meadowlands. Trained by Casie Coleman and owned by Ed James’ S G G Stables, the son of McArdle-Western Sahara ended the season as the sport’s highest ranked horse and stamped himself as the favorite for 2018 Horse of the Year honors.
“Thanks to all the breeding farms who have contacted us to stand McWicked [at stud],” Coleman wrote on social media in October. “Owner Ed James (of S S G Stables) loves watching his horse race and has made his decision.”
James determined his horse’s future shortly after his final race of 2018: the stallion will return to competition in 2019.
After the season the Pennsylvania-bred enjoyed this year with a record of 19-12-3-2 and $1.58 million in the bank, it will be interesting to witness what McWicked will accomplish next year.
“To think he was going to do what he did this year would be impossible,” Coleman told standardbredcanada.com. “I felt confident he would have a big season, but he’s made almost $1.5 million and barely missed the top three. In the starts he got beat, he only got beat from the way the trip went. I’ve never seen anybody as consistent as he’s been week in and week out.
“It’s not like he has easy miles and he’s been at the top of his game since he started the season. The horse is 7-years-old and racing against the best of the best in the Open (class) every week. It’s fun every time he goes to the gate. As long as he’s healthy and sound we’re definitely planning to race him next year.”
A Breeders Crown winner at age 3, a world champion and Dan Patch Award winner, James purchased McWicked at the 2013 Standardbred Horse Sale as a 2-year-old for $210,000.
In his first season of racing McWicked was trained by Julie Miller and showed promise. The then-colt compiled a record of 10-3-5-1 and earned $179,617.
Coleman took over the training duties when the colt was a sophomore and McWicked rose to the top of his division. He earned $1.47 million with a resume of 23-12-5-4 and established a world record of 1:47.3 with a win in the $500,000 Max Hempt Memorial final at The Downs at Mohegan Sun Pocono. His other wins that season included the $301,560 Progress Pace and the $400,000 Adios final at The Meadows.
When he returned to competition as a 4-year-old, McWicked did not return to top form. His record was 10-0-3-2 and he only earned $90,283. As a 5-year-old, he only faced the starter on four occasions, managed two third place finishes and collected $18,650.
The stallion, however, did have a reason for his poor performances.
“He had to have two different throat surgeries,” James explained. “The first one did not take and we had to take him back for a second one. That is why he was on the sidelines for so long.”
McWicked also changed barns and was trained for the first part of last year by Steve Elliott. Despite flying a bit under the radar, the stallion earned $560,025 with a record of 27-7-7-2. He was second in the $421,000 Breeders Crown final and the $350,000 TVG Open final.
“He kept being the bridesmaid,” Coleman said. “He just had a lot of bad luck with traffic. He was pacing harder than any of them at the wire, he just had some bad luck. But saying that, the horse has made over $2 million, so I guess you can’t say it’s too bad of luck.
“It’s not often that he’s off the board. He usually gives you all he’s got and he’s usually right there. He’s had a lot of first-over journeys where he still gets the job done. He can take any trip you give him.”
McWicked kicked off his 2018 campaign with a win in a $26,520 Preferred event at Woodbine Mohawk Park on May 19. He was then fourth in the Commodore Barry Invitational at Harrah’s Philadelphia prior to finishing second in the $76,000 Gold Cup and Saucer back at Woodbine. He then won the $500,000 Ben Franklin final and the $471,100 William Haughton Memorial final before finishing second in the $260,000 McKee Memorial and third in the $325,000 Dan Patch Invitational.
After returning to Canadian soil, the stallion captured the $462,000 Canadian Pacing Derby, then dead-heated for fourth in the $250,000 Ewart Memorial. McWicked was then second behind New Zealand super star Lazarus N in the $177,000 Hoosier Park Pacing Derby before finishing third in the $150,000 Dayton Pacing Derby.
Since leaving Dayton, McWicked has reeled off five straight victories including a 1:46.2 triumph at Red Mile in the $179,000 Allerage Farms Open Pace on Oct. 6. It is the second-fastest mile in the history of the sport behind only Always B Miki’s 1:46 standard.
After his win in the TVG final, there was some question as to whether the stallion would be retired and head off for the breeding shed.
Coleman said in an interview after the race, she hoped she would have the opportunity to train McWicked next year as a number of farms had been calling her.
She claimed she had not spoken with James, but that he had not returned any of the phone calls. Therefore, it was not shocking news when Coleman announced McWicked would be returning in 2019.
“I bought the horse to race,” James said in March of 2017. “I never got in this business to make money. I worked and still run my business (SSG Gloves) primarily by myself. I don’t take partners on horses because I like to control my own fate and I’ve been divorced twice, so that shows I’m not meant to have a partner.
“I’m 85 years old and by the time I could watch his foals race I would be 90 and let’s face it, I might not be here then. Horses like this don’t come around very often; some people never get one and I don’t have another lifetime to find another one.