Rocket Man Hill worked out a perfect pocket trip after getting a perfect steer from driver Braxten Boyd to take the Friday, April 17 feature at The Meadowlands, a $20,833 high-end conditioned trot.

Sent to the gate as the 28-1 sixth choice in the field of eight, the Amanda Fine-trained Rocket Man Hill blasted off from post two, out-sprinting Maximum Exposure (Anibal Borjas) as well as a pair of big-name, back-class masters, 7-5 second choice Rattle My Cage (Tim Tetrick) and 6-5 favourite Chapercraz (Joe Bongiorno), who aborted his speed mission out of the first turn.

Rocket Man Hill had the lead at the quarter in :27.1 before Rattle My Cage surged up quickly from first-over to take over the top and hit the half in :56.4.

“The way it played out, I ended up being able to get him in the two-hole behind the horse that looked like the horse to beat,” said Boyd of the tactic that worked to perfection.

Rattle My Cage shook and rolled past the half in :56.4 and three-quarters in 1:25.3 as Maximum Exposure applied token pressure to the far turn, and when the field straightened up at the head of the stretch, it looked like Rattle My Cage had things under control.

But it didn’t work out for the Annie Stoebe trainee, who was making just his second start since early December of 2023.

Boyd found just enough space along the inside late, and Rocket Man Hill, showing crisp late trot, propelled past Rattle My Cage by a neck in 1:53.2. Goo For Broke (Todd McCarthy) was third with Maximum Exposure fourth. Chapercraz advanced along the inside down the backstretch from a tough early spot but had no racing room through the stretch and had to settle for a fifth-place cheque.

“My horse loves being on the rail in the last turn,” said Boyd. “He does struggle when you have him in the two-path, but he goes through the last turn perfectly on the rail.

“When we straightened up and he still had a good hold of me, I thought, man, we got a shot here, and Timmy’s horse [Rattle My Cage] drifted a little and he shot through there like he knows how to do it. [He left the gate] in 27 seconds like it was nothing. He was very good tonight.”

A five-year-old gelded son of Muscle Hill-Drinking Class, Rocket Man Hill returned $58.20 to his backers after winning for the 10th time in 57 career starts. His earnings now stand at $166,325. The winner is owned by Rose Colangelo of Jupiter, Florida.

Boyd finished with four winners on the night to lead the drivers. Mark Ford topped the trainers with a pair of walks down victory lane.

Patick O’Malley wagered $60 to win on Sweet Sandy in the 12th race, and when the 5-1 shot scored and paid $13.80, it catapulted The Big M regular to the top of the leaderboard before going on to win leg four of the Meadowlands $1,000 USD Monthly Handicapping Contest.

O’Malley turned his $100 bankroll into $554 at night’s end to also take away the competition’s $500 USD first prize. Stefan Ferrara, who ended the card with $380, finished second for the $250 USD prize.

By finishing 1-2, O’Malley and Ferrara have now qualified for the Saturday, Dec. 12 invitation-only contest, which will have $10,000 USD in prize money up for grabs. After finishing second in leg one on Jan. 10, Ferrara will now have two entries for the big-money finale.

The fifth leg of the monthly test takes place on Saturday, May 23.

The $1 Pick 8 and 20-cent Pick 6 both failed to yield winning tickets, setting up carryovers of $56,244 and $5,320, respectively, for Saturday’s card.

All-source wagering on the 14-race program totalled $2,159,370 USD.

Racing resumes on Saturday at 6:35 p.m.

(With files from Meadowlands Racetrack)