There was a matter of survival in Buffalo Raceway's $18,919 Open Trot on Saturday night (March 23) and it was Jacked who managed to weather the storm and collect the $17 upset victory.

Optical Illusion N ($5.80) used the inside post to his full advantage and wired the field in the $18,919 co-featured Open Pace. He held off a hard-charging Lip Reader A by 1-1/2 lengths in 1:56.2.

With the Open Trot field whittled down to seven with the scratch of Discus Hanover, the number of competitors dropped quickly after the starting gate opened as Biscoe, Johnny Boy and Good Boy all broke stride. 

The field was now down to a compact group of four with Jacked (Joseph Chindano Jr.) scurrying up to take the lead. With fractions of :29.2, :59 and 1:28.3 posted on the board, Jacked was prepared for the stretch drive.

Power And Grace (Drew Monti), the winner of last week's Open Trot, made a mild bid on the outside but Jacked was way too strong and cruised to the 1-1/4-length victory in 1:57.4 over the 'good' track. Power And Grace did hold on for second-place honours while HP Running Mass (David McNeight III) was pushed up to third as Seven Credits was disqualified to fourth due to a lapped-on break.

The win was the second win in eight starts for the five-year-old Jacked (Muscle Mass-Krafty), who is owned Vogel & Wags Nags LLC and trained by Maria Rice.The victory upped his seasonal earnings to $26,971 and lifetime bankroll to $147,014.

After breaking in last week's Open Pace and losing all hope, Optical Illusion N (James McNeight Jr.) bounced back nicely and kept the field at bay in posting the solid length decision over Lip Reader A (Drew Monti).

Scoring from the inside, Optical Illusion N held his position early and set the tempo with fractions of :30, :59.2 and 1:28. Down the lane, Optical Illusion N had plenty of pace and held back the late threats from Lip Reader A and Villiam (Chindano Jr.), who took second and third-place, respectively.

 The win was the second win in 10 tries for the eight-year-old gelded Optical Illusion N (Hes Watching-Pure Octane), who is owned by Kimberley Zabielski and trained by Jim McNeight. The score moved his 2024 bankroll to $38,658 and lifetime stash to $244,402.

Racing will resume on Wednesday, March 27 at 2:30 p.m. with 12 races scheduled. Buffalo Raceway will swing into a three-day week for the rest of the meet beginning this Friday, March 29, with the first post set for 2:30 p.m.

(With files from Buffalo Raceway)