Yonkers and Meadowlands offer solid Saturday night cards
During the weekend in which the National Football League determined its final four teams for the conference championship games next weekend, both Yonkers Raceway and the Meadowlands offered solid Saturday cards during an area spared much of the same winter storm that slammed the Mid-Atlantic region.
A quartet of events during the middle of the Saturday card at Yonkers proved to highlight several classy trotters and pacers as well as the track's leading driver.
In a non-winners of $30,000 last five starts class for trotters, Melady's Monet (Jason Bartlett) easily lived up to his role as the 3-4 favorite when he gained command in a 29.2 opener, got a breather by the half in 59.2, rolled by three-quarters in 1:28 then edged clear late to score in 1:56.2. A 10-year-old Revenue S gelding blessed with speed and ample back class, Melady's Monet prevailed in his seasonal debut and now owns a 53-35-26 slate and earned $1.34 million banked from 173 lifetime tries.
Then one race later in the $44,000 Open for pacers, Bellows Binge (Barlett) continued his winning ways when he rallied third over and nailed Christen Me N (Matt Kakaley) late for a nose victory in 1:54. A four-year-old Maryland-bred trained by Richard Banca, Bellows Binge tallied in his seasonal debut and now boasts four straights wins and a 10-4-4 slate and nearly $140,000 banked from 38 lifetime outings.
One race later in a non-winners of $30,000 last five starts class for pacers, Great Vintage (Jim Marohn, Jr.) lived up to his billing as the 3-4 favorite when he gained command early and carved out honest fractions of 28, 57.2 and 1:25 en route to a 1:53.3 score. The 11-year-old American Ideal stallion trained by Gary Candell kicked off his latest campaign with a victory and now owns a solid 48-28-18 slate and $1.36 million bankroll from 174 career tries.
Then one race later in the $44,000 Open for trotters, Andy Ray (Bartlett) lived up to his role as the even-money favorite when he outlasted the late bid of Smalltownthrowdown for a length score in 1:55.4. A seven-year-old Crazed gelding , Andy Ray kicked off his current campaign with a solid victory and now owns a 21-17-20 slate and over $520,000 banked from 106 lifetime outings.
Across the Hudson River at the Meadowlands, Constantlysideways A (Dexter Dunn) forged a mild upset in the $21,000 Preferred Handicap when he rallied first over to edge Maryland-bred Tuxedo Bay (Eric Carlson) in 1:50.1. It was his first win in two starts this year and he now owns a 26-17-22 slate and $165,000 banked from 102 career outings. Rock The Nite (Corey Callahan) captured a non-winners of $15,000 last five starts class in 1:51.1 and McThriller (Andy Miller) posted a 14-1 upset in a non-winners of $11,500 last five starts class by a nose over Ideal Jimmy.
A quartet of events during the middle of the Saturday card at Yonkers proved to highlight several classy trotters and pacers as well as the track's leading driver.
In a non-winners of $30,000 last five starts class for trotters, Melady's Monet (Jason Bartlett) easily lived up to his role as the 3-4 favorite when he gained command in a 29.2 opener, got a breather by the half in 59.2, rolled by three-quarters in 1:28 then edged clear late to score in 1:56.2. A 10-year-old Revenue S gelding blessed with speed and ample back class, Melady's Monet prevailed in his seasonal debut and now owns a 53-35-26 slate and earned $1.34 million banked from 173 lifetime tries.
Then one race later in the $44,000 Open for pacers, Bellows Binge (Barlett) continued his winning ways when he rallied third over and nailed Christen Me N (Matt Kakaley) late for a nose victory in 1:54. A four-year-old Maryland-bred trained by Richard Banca, Bellows Binge tallied in his seasonal debut and now boasts four straights wins and a 10-4-4 slate and nearly $140,000 banked from 38 lifetime outings.
One race later in a non-winners of $30,000 last five starts class for pacers, Great Vintage (Jim Marohn, Jr.) lived up to his billing as the 3-4 favorite when he gained command early and carved out honest fractions of 28, 57.2 and 1:25 en route to a 1:53.3 score. The 11-year-old American Ideal stallion trained by Gary Candell kicked off his latest campaign with a victory and now owns a solid 48-28-18 slate and $1.36 million bankroll from 174 career tries.
Then one race later in the $44,000 Open for trotters, Andy Ray (Bartlett) lived up to his role as the even-money favorite when he outlasted the late bid of Smalltownthrowdown for a length score in 1:55.4. A seven-year-old Crazed gelding , Andy Ray kicked off his current campaign with a solid victory and now owns a 21-17-20 slate and over $520,000 banked from 106 lifetime outings.
Across the Hudson River at the Meadowlands, Constantlysideways A (Dexter Dunn) forged a mild upset in the $21,000 Preferred Handicap when he rallied first over to edge Maryland-bred Tuxedo Bay (Eric Carlson) in 1:50.1. It was his first win in two starts this year and he now owns a 26-17-22 slate and $165,000 banked from 102 career outings. Rock The Nite (Corey Callahan) captured a non-winners of $15,000 last five starts class in 1:51.1 and McThriller (Andy Miller) posted a 14-1 upset in a non-winners of $11,500 last five starts class by a nose over Ideal Jimmy.
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