Mohegan Sun at Pocono Downs Week in Review

Nov 4, 2013 | Racing

October 25-November 1, 2013
With the Breeders Crown in our rear view and November now upon us, it means that we have officially hit the home stretch of the 2013 season at Mohegan Sun at Pocono Downs. Before we can wrap things up, we still have a few more weeks of exciting racing action to finish. This past week there were some excellent performances even with the temperatures dropping. Here are the best of those in the Weekly Awards.
PACER OF THE WEEK: HERE WE GO AGAIN
An outstanding field of nine headed to the gate in Saturday night’s featured $25,000 Preferred pace, including several horses who have been on torrid hot steaks. Here We Go Again was one of those horses. He came in off five straight in the money. The 6-year-old gelding from the barn of PJ Fraley had been particularly tough at Pocono, winning back-to-back condition paces in his previous two circuits of the track.
Saturday night was his first try in the Preferred class though, which meant he would be facing the very best pacers on the grounds. Driver Eric Ledford raced him aggressively, setting nasty fractions in the chilly temperatures that seemed destined to catch up with him in the race. Come the stretch, however, he was still winging it.
Things got real tight in the final strides when pocket horse Townslight Hanover, who had been tracking with an excellent trip, came firing. The two pacesetters hit the line together, but it was Here We Go Again who took the photo by a nose. He paced the mile in 1:50, giving him four wins in his last six races and an improving reputation as some of the finest pacers in the East.
Other top pacers include: Easton Bound (Matt Kakaley, Chris Oakes), a fast-improving 3-year-old, who won his second straight condition pace on Friday and third in his last four overall, this one coming in a time of 1:54:1; Keystone Neptune (George Napolitano Jr., Rene Allard), who won his second straight $20,000 claimer, this one in 1:52, giving him five wins in his last eight; and A Sweet Ride (Andrew McCarthy, Aaron Lambert), who chalked up a condition win on Saturday night in 1:49:4, the fastest pacing time of the week at Pocono.
TROTTER OF THE WEEK: PAULA’S BRADY
This 7-year-old gelding has been one of the most consistent lower-priced trotters at Pocono for much of the meet, and he’s been coming into his best stride of late. He scored back-to-back $10,000 claiming victories in come-from-behind fashion to start off the month of October. In his last race, he started a bit slow, finishing third as an even-money favorite.
He was back at it again on Tuesday night in the same class trying to avenge his loss, this time with Anthony Napolitano in the bike for trainer Scott Osterhout. Paula’s Brady nearly got boxed in on the inside behind the leaders, but Napolitano found him some room behind cover on the outside before the gap closed. He followed that cover until the stretch.
It was an exciting three-way battle for the win in the closing moments. At times Paula’s Brady seemed like he was going to come up just a bit short. But Napolitano coaxed just enough out of him as the line approached for a razor-thin victory in 1:56. That gives him three wins in his last four races, quite the hot stretch for this veteran trotter as the season winds down.
Honorable mention on the trotting side goes to: Affirmed Action (Mike Simons, John Grasso), whose condition victory on Friday night came in the week’s fastest trotting time of 1:53:4; Schalom G (George Napolitano Jr., Neal Ehrhart), who captured a tough condition trot on Saturday night in 1:55; and Southwind Warsaw (Matt Kakaley, Brewer Adams), who scored a victory in Tuesday night’s featured claiming handicap trot in a career-best 1:54:1.
LONG SHOT OF THE WEEK: TAYLOR C
Despite going off at 31-1, this claiming pacer with Anthony Napolitano in the bike made a couple of speed moves on Friday night and came up a winner for a $65.20 win payout.
DRIVER OF THE WEEK: ERIC LEDFORD
Ledford doesn’t stop in at Pocono very often, but he might want to be a more frequent visitor after picking up three victories for trainer PJ Fraley on Saturday night.
TRAINER OF THE WEEK: PAUL HOLZMAN
Another solid performer from the deep Pocono training community, Holzman had a good week  with single wins on Friday and Tuesday.
That will do it for this week, but we’ll see you at the track. Feel free to e-mail me at [email protected].
 
 

Mohegan Sun at Pocono Downs Week in Review

May 17, 2012 | Racing

May 11-17, 2012
The action at Mohegan Sun at Pocono Downs has been great all season long, but the last few weeks have been particularly fine, highlighted by the first track records of the season. With the first Sire Stakes of the season in the offing, the racing is bound to get even hotter in the weeks to come. In the meantime, let’s dive into this edition of the Weekly Awards.
PACER OF THE WEEK: TRANSCENDING
This 8-year-old stallion from the Ron Burke barn has been a top performer for several years. Consistency is the name of his game, as he has hit the board in more than half of his 156 career starts, most of which came against the finest pacing competition at Pocono and other Eastern tracks. His effort Saturday night, however, is one that will stand out in his illustrious career.
Facing an excellent field of condition pacers, Transcending worked out an excellent trip behind a raging speed duel between American Rage and Mickey Hanover. As the fractions got faster and faster, Matt Kakaley sat tight with the stallion, waiting for his opportunity to explode.
That opportunity came in the stretch, as he battled American Rage through the lane right to the finish line. When the dust cleared, Transcending was on top by a nose in a ridiculous time in 1:48:2. That was not only his new career-best, but it matched the Pocono track mark for aged stallions on the pace, previously set by Vlos in October of 2010.
Other top pacers this week include: Hurrikane Scotty J (Joe Pavia Jr., Chris Oakes), who stepped up in class on Saturday night to conquer the $20,000 claimers, his third straight win, in a new career-best time of 1:51:1; Fearlesss Diablo (Andrew McCarthy, Dylan Davis), who kept his winning streak alive after returning from Harrah’s with a condition victory on Saturday night, his third straight, in 1:51:3; and Billmar Scooter (Tyler Buter, Amber Buter), who beat the best mares on the grounds for a second straight week on Tuesday in 1:51.
TROTTER OF THE WEEK: KEYSTONE TORCH
Many times in this column, the Pacers and Trotters of the Week come from the highest ranks of the conditions and claimers. Every once in a while, a horse from some of the more modest ranks puts together a string of racing that just can’t be ignored. Such is the excellent stretch of racing that Keystone Torch has assembled the past month.
Even at age 11, this gelding has been impossible to beat in the $7,500 claimers since arriving at Pocono from Harrah’s. He reeled off three straight wins for trainer Jennifer Sabot as soon as he hit the MSPD racing surface, only to be claimed following his win on May 4. That meant that Friday night he was heading to a gate for a new trainer, Chris Oakes.
None of that mattered once the gate sped away and Keystone Torch got to the front end. Nobody could get to him and driver George Napolitano Jr., and he coasted to the victory by 1 ¼ lengths in 1:57:1. That makes 4 in a row for the veteran, the longest winning streak at Pocono so far in the 2012 meet.
Honorable mention on the trotting side goes to: Fox Valley Iliad (Tom Jackson, Kimberly Asher), who, after winning Trotter of the Week honors for setting a track record last week, went even faster in his victory in the week’s featured trot on Saturday night, setting a mark of 1:52, which is a new world record for 4-year-old stallions on the trot; Marion Miss Julie (Eric Carlson, Neal Ehrhart), who switched barns and had to deal with the far outside post but still scored his second straight claiming handicap win on Saturday night in 1:54:3; and Bayside Volo (Matt Kakaley, Chris Oakes), who once again moved up in class and switched barns but still won his third straight on Tuesday night in 1:54:4.
LONG SHOT OF THE WEEK: LOCO FOR COCOA
He’s got a great name, and the colt had the game to match on Tuesday night, picking up his maiden win with John Kakaley in the bike at 26-1, paying off $54.60 on a $2 win ticket.
DRIVER OF THE WEEK: ERIC CARLSON
It seems like every year a new driver breaks into the Pocono driving colony and makes a splash. Carlson seems to be fitting that bill for 2012 after five driving wins last weekend.
TRAINER OF THE WEEK: CHRIS OAKES
Once again, Oakes is among the best trainers at Pocono. He’s been red hot early in the season, and he knocked out a training double on Saturday night on his way to a five-win week.
That will do it for this week, but we’ll see you at the track. Feel free to e-mail me at [email protected].