Thursday night at Hawthorne featured the final in the Dygert Trotting Series – an event restricted to male trotters who that were non-winners of three pari-mutuel races or $15,000 lifetime as of December 1, 2015.
The first two legs of the series were dominated by Topville Avatar as he won both legs by daylight. The final would be no different.
From the outside, Riets Kid left early and rushed to the front. Second choice Maple Grove Joe had settled in fourth while the 1-5 favourite, Topville Avatar sat sixth early on. Coming off the turn, Maple Grove Joe tipped three-wide to rally up to the lead while Topville Avatar and driver Dale Hiteman quickly moved behind that one. In the final sixteenth, Topville Avatar took command and went on to win in a lifetime best 1:57.2. Maple Grove Joe finished second, All About Cowboys was third.
Topville Avatar, a son of Swan For All-After Dark, is owned by Paula Smith and James Runyan and trained by Joel Smith. The victory was his third of the season, and his fifth to date. The lion’s share of the purse bumped his career cash stash to $35,104.
(With files from Hawthorne Racecourse)