Harness Weekly Update: Big hit with $63 Daily Double

The TwinSpires Harness Blog Weekly Update covers our successes and failures from selected features and the H2W (horses-to-watch list). H2W horses through the following Monday appear in the next Update’s results.

Thursday, April 21

This week’s Mohawk Miles delivered favorite Raptors Won ($2.20, $2.10, $2.10) and a third for Tie One On ($2.20).

At Philly, Knight Angel scratched, leaving us with Circle Of Life AS ($2.10, $2.20 OK), who finished in a dead-heat for second.

Saturday, April 23

The Open Handicap trot at the Meadowlands was a good start of the season for Back Of The Neck (8-5). The fans made him the tight second choice, but the favorite won and “Neck” finished fifth.

H2W LIST RESULTS

The H2W results list across-the-board prices. Exactas listed include a H2W horse finishing second to a race-favorite or if the first two finishers are H2W horses (an asterisk appears when both horses form a cold exotic combo; most base prices are $2). The note “OK” determines that prices are correct (even when a show price exceeds a place price or all prices are the same).

Please note that some results reflect horses racing after the blog posts (they appear the following week).

This week, there were 44 H2W horses (an 18% win-hit rate and a 30% ATB [across-the-board] hit). Horses with asterisks before their names were tweets @FrankCotolo. Follow for late choices.

Winners

*Billy B, $24.20, $5.20, $3.00, Plainridge
Captain Dolmion, $11.60, $6.20, $5.60, Miami
Ceffyl DWR, $10.80, $5.80, $3.20, Philly
Neyreit, $7.00, $2.80, $2.60, Miami
*One Swan For All, $4.80, $2.20, $2.20 (Daily Double $63.40), Plainridge
Gingerzzz, $3.40, $2.40, $2.10, Meadows
Bearly Behavin, $3.20, $2.60 (Exacta $4.60), Northville
Admiral, $2.20, $2.10, n/s, Monticello

Seconds

Sweet N Fast N, $10.20, $5.90, Yonkers
HP Xanadu, $3.40, $2.40, Hoosier
Fireball, $2.70, $3.00 OK, Saratoga
Kerrin Joseph A, $2.40, $2.20, Hoosier

Thirds

Silver Diamond, $2.80, Mohawk

NEWS & NOTES

Charlottetown Driving Park and Summerside Raceway prepare for the 2022 season of harness racing coming off a record-setting year. Wagering was up 21% in 2021, a result of strong local interest and more betting operators across North America. The first program of the season is on May 7 at 6:30 p.m. (ADT) from Charlottetown Driving Park. Summerside starts on May 23 at 1 p.m. (ADT). There are over 100 racing programs scheduled in 2022 between the two tracks.

Test Of Faith, 2021 Horse of the Year, now four, won her ’22 debut, a qualifier on April 19 at Philly. The Brett Pelling trainee followed loosely in the pocket early through fractions of :30.1, :59.4, and 1:28.3 before kicking home up the pylons in :28.4 to win in 1:57.3. She Knows It All finished 1 1/2 lengths behind after setting the pace. Pelling said she is scheduled to make her first start in the Graduate Series on May 7.

Australia will host the world’s richest harness race. Harness Racing Australia announced the creation and conditions for the A$2.1-million The TAB Eureka. The inaugural event will be run at Club Menangle over 2,300 meters, starting on Sept. 2, 2023. The “Eureka” prize money easily beats the purses for global harness races like Sweden’s Elitlopp ($A1.67mil), France’s Prix d’Amerique ($A1.56mil), the U.S.’s Hambletonian ($A1.3mil) and Canada’s North America Cup ($A1.3 mil).

Extraordinary Extras

Indulge in our columns, Alternative Actions and Bettors Banquet, at Harness Racing Update.