It's safe to say that Hot Deuce is on fire right now. After scoring an eye-popping 14-length win in 1:54.2 last week in an $8,000 claiming event in his Buffalo Raceway debut, the Alberta-owned pacer Hot Deuce took a giant step up in class on Saturday night (April 8).

Landing in the $10,000 in Open Pace, Hot Deuce ($12) put in another blistering performance, beating Shady City by a neck in 1:53.2 over the fast track. The time was the quickest of the season at Buffalo Raceway and was also a lifetime mark for Hot Deuce.

After making starts this season at Western Fair, Flamboro Downs and Woodbine Racetrack, Hot Deuce is thriving in his new Buffalo Raceway surroundings as he is now a perfect two-for-two.

At the start of the race, China Dream was able to jump to the top in the field of six. Setting fractions of :28.1, :57 and 1:25, China Dream (Shawn Gray) had to deal with the pesky Hot Deuce (Drew Monti), who got a first-over trip starting just before the opening half.

In the stretch, Hot Deuce continued to grind on the outside and was able to take the lead late. Shady City (Larry Stalbaum) made a gallant effort and finished a tough-luck second, a neck back, while China Dream was third in the blanket finish.

Owned by Mike McAllister of Beaumont, Alta., and trained by Sabrina Clevenger, Hot Deuce (Armbro Deuce-Hot Dam Here Iam) is a five-year-old gelding that has three wins in eight tries in 2017. The victory upped his season bankroll to $13,212 and lifetime earnings to $59,900.

Monti was on fire in the sulky as he registered a five-bagger while Ray Fisher Jr. tripled and Ron Beback Jr. doubled. Trainer JD Perrin had two winners.

Racing will resume on Wednesday evening at 5 p.m. with an 11-race card scheduled.

(With files from Buffalo Raceway)