Toreador Gb showed plenty of grit and determination in the stretch as he held back the late challenge of Lanjo Lee in the $20,417 Open Handicap Pace at Buffalo Raceway on Saturday, May 23. 

The Writer (Travis Henry) put up the early fractions of :28.3 and :57.3 over the track rated good but threw in the towel at the three-quarter marker in 1:27.1 as Toreador Gb (Greg Merton) took over the lead. Toreador Gb then had to contend with Lanjo Lee (Kyle Cummings) making a slow and steady climb into contention. In the stretch, Lanjo Lee fought desperately against a stubborn Toreador Gb, who successfully held his ground to the wire to win by a head in a seasonal-best 1:55.4. I Aint No Mack (Kevin Cummings) finished third.

Owned by Monique Cohen and trained by Sheena Cohen, Toreador Gb took his third win his last four starts, upping his seasonal tally to three-for-nine. The six-year-old son of Matador Hall-Lady Claires Best is now 16-for-62 lifetime with $147,386 in earnings. He paid $20.86 to win as the 9-1 fifth choice in the six-horse field.

Crazy Ritz cracked his rivals in the $20,417 Open Handicap Trot with three-quarter-length victory over El Toro Loco in 2:00.4.

El Toro Loco (Kevin Cummings) zoomed to take early command, but the rail-riding Crazy Ritz (James McNeight Jr.) wanted no part of the pocket and retook the lead. Approaching the opening stanza, Crazy Ritz cleared to the front, and El Toro Loco took the perfect pocket journey. Past steady fractions of :30.1, 1:00.2 and 1:31, the pair drew away from the pack in the sprint to the wire. Crazy Ritz comfortably kept El Toro Loco at bay down the lane with Deliciousstone Dk (Monti) getting up to take third.

Crazy Ritz took his third win in 11 tries this year for owner James Palladino and trainer Jeff Martin. The six-year-old Crazy Wow-Bubblesnritz stallion upped his career bankroll to $355,153 with his 22nd win in 94 starts. He returned $3.72 at the windows.

Sam Smith hit a grand slam on the 13-race card, with four horses from his barn reaching the winner's circle. The leading trainer at Buffalo added to his advantage via wins by Skyway Ballistic ($9), Final Game ($4.28) and Infinity Stone ($2.80), all of whom were making their first starts out of the Smith barn, along with Out On Bail ($4.44). He is 58-for-288 overall this season and has taken 44 wins at Buffalo, given him a 15-win advantage over David Russo.

Merton and Drew Monti both had three wins on the card. Brett MacDonald and David McNeight III posted doubles. Trainers Sheena Cohen and Russo collected two victories apiece.

Racing will return to Buffalo on Wednesday at 2:30 p.m. with a 13-race program scheduled.

(With files from Buffalo Raceway)