Mercutio is sure loving his new surroundings at Buffalo Raceway as he registered a blowout five-length victory over Muskingum in the featured $14,247 Class A trot on Friday, June 14.

After racing at Woodbine Mohawk Park, Mercutio tried his luck at Buffalo Raceway for the first time on June 8 and found the winner's circle with a 1-1/4-length decision in 1:57.3.in the Class B level. So he was ready to try his luck for a second time, but facing tougher times in the Class A.  

Mercutio (Drew Monti) started from the inside post and easily coasted through panels of :28.4, :59.2 and 1:29 over the fast track. Down the home stretch, Mercutio put it into overdrive and pulled away from Muskingum (Jim Morrill Jr.) while Captain Krupnik (Shawn McDonough) took the show spot.

Trained and owned by Shane Arsenault, five-year-old Mercutio (Bar Hopping-Frisky Magic) notched his third score in 19 attempts on the campaign. The victory increased his earnings to $63,997 seasonally and $136,913 in his career.

Dougadougadew ($8.50) continued to rise up the class ladder by rallying late to squeeze past SS Tys Aflyin by a head in a career best in 1:58.3 in the $12,329 Class B trot.

Back on May 17, Dougadougadew (Kyle Cummings) took the Class D event and then stepped up to the Class C level. With a second-place finish and then a victory, he now found himself again up to the Class B classification.

After watching Poets N Pirates (Kevin Cummings) stomp out splits of :29.3, 1:00.1 and 1:29.3, the pocket-sitting SS Tys Aflyin managed to wrangle the lead from Poets N Pirates. But that advantage would quickly evaporate as Dougadougadew came zooming by on the outside and managed to get up in the shadow of the wire. SS Tys Aflyin finished a heartbroken second while Poets N Pirates held on for third.

It was the fourth win in 10 starts on the season for the five-year-old Dougadougadew (Deweycheatumnhowe-Fashionablefilly), owned by Doug and Tyra Ackley and trained by Tammy Cummings. The triumph pushed his seasonal bankroll to $30,110 and $46,632 lifetime.

Bet On Blake ($3.80) showed he was worth a bet as he scored a solid length victory over Bet Eightthirtyone by a length in 1:57.1 in the $12,329 Class B pace.

With Century Grizzly taking the lead briefly off the gate, Bet On Blake (Kevin Cummings) quickly moved around to retake the top. After posting splits of :29, :59.1 and 1:28.2, Bet On Blake was poised to take on any and all challengers down the stretch. He was more than up for the test as Bet Eightthirtyone (David McNeight III) and Better B Swift (Monti) failed to mount any sustained charges.

Samuel Smith trains six-year-old Bet On Blake (Betterthancheddar-Lady Lynnly) for owner Michael Torcello. The win, his fourth in 18 tries this year, increased his 2024 earnings to $29,909 and $195,082 in his career.

Racing will continue on Saturday, June 15 beginning at 6 p.m. with a 12-race program to be presented. There's a $1,459 carryover in the Pick 5 which begins in the second race.

(Buffalo Raceway)