The Bar Hopping gelding That Ole Bar Stool, backed to 1-20 favouritism, had to be good to defeat a game El Toro Loco by a neck in 1:55 to take the $50,000 Bobby Weiss Series Championship for sophomore trotting males on Saturday afternoon (April 23) at The Downs at Mohegan Sun Pocono.

El Toro Loco, who won in the first two Weiss elims before taking last week off, hustled out for the lead. That Ole Bar Stool — who skipped the first prelim, had missed a neck to El Toro Loco in the middle series leg and then posted a giant 1:54.3 victory last week — gradually made his way up past a :28.3 quarter and went to the front turn before a :57.3 half under the guidance of Matt Kakaley.

That Ole Bar Stool got to three-quarters in 1:26.4 as Backstreet Player came up to challenge, but he turned back that rival, then withstood the stretch rally of El Toro Loco with a :28.1 last quarter. Trained by Robert W. Clark for Clark Stables LLC and Tina Clark, That Ole Bar Stool now has five wins and two seconds in eight starts this season.

In the $20,000 Weiss Consolation for this group, the Father Patrick gelding Ducasse was three-wide much of the :28.2 first quarter, then went along nicely for driver Scott Zeron through midsplits of :58.2 and 1:26.4. Ducasse maintained an open lead until deep stretch, when a blur named Dandy closed furiously to miss a neck while Ducasse took a new mark of 1:55.2. The winner is two-for-two in 2022 for trainer Nancy Takter and the ownership of Brixton Medical Inc., Christina Takter, Hatfield Stables, and Fair Island Farm.

There were also three $20,000 third round prelims of the Weiss for the pacing males, with their $50,000 Championship to be held next Saturday. And the So Surreal gelding Lanjo Lee did nothing to dampen the enthusiasm of his supporters with his third Weiss win and his fifth of an undefeated 2022, here in a new mark of 1:51.2.

Tyler Buter had his horse on the move from fourth just before the :27.2 opener, and the pair cleared easily and hung up midrace fractions of :55.3 and 1:24. A closing kicker of :27.2 left the opposition 2-1/2 lengths behind for Lanjo Lee’s smallest winning margin of the year, and trainer Jeff Sorenson and owner Gordon Swift should find their pacer vying for Championship favouritism with All Or Nothing, a double Weiss winner (including one in 1:51) who took the last prelim off.

Huntsville geldings accounted for the other two Weiss prelims. The first was Kingsville, who had made a break as the favourite in his only series start, but here came his own last half in :55.2 to upset a heavy favourite, Captaingiddyupngo, while lowering his mark to 1:53.1 for driver Simon Allard, trainer Deborah Daguet, and the ownership of D Racing Stable Inc., and B & I Stables LLC.

Another winner in the Weiss was Letmecallyouback, who quarter-moved to command then stepped home in :27.3 for a new mark of 1:53.3 for trainer Jennifer Bongiorno and the ownership of Joseph Di Scala Jr., Pit Bull Stable LLC, and Patrick O’Brien. Letmecallyouback was one of three sulky successes for Jason Bartlett, who tied with George Napolitano Jr. for the day’s honours; all three of “George Nap”’s winners were with Chuck Crissman Jr. trainees.

Racing resumes Sunday (April 24) at Pocono with a 5:00 p.m. (EDT) card when fillies and mares looking to make a name for themselves will meet in a $17,000 featured pace. Pocono will also be racing on Monday, featuring $50,000 Weiss Series Championships for distaffs on both gaits, and Tuesday at 1:30 p.m. Program pages will be available at https://www.phha.org/downsmsppps.html.

(PHHA / Pocono)