A better post and a driver switch to Ken Holliday turned out to be the winning tonic for OK Braveheart ($19.20) as he won the featured $8,500 Open Pace in 1:53.3 on a perfect Saturday night (Sept. 28) at Batavia Downs.

Stonebridge Rocket (Shawn McDonough) fired out and posted wicked fractions of :26.2 and :55.2 to the half. That prove to be a perfect set-up for the closers. Stonebridge Rocket stalled badly and OK Braveheart, who was third, came first over and took a commanding two-length lead to the three-quarter marker in 1:24. The ever-dangerous closer Fireyourguns (Mike Caprio) made a charge in the stretch, but OK Braveheart was still 'OK' in the lane and won by oe and a quarter lengths at the wire. What The Sheik (Ray Fisher Jr.) finished third.

Owned by Ron and Paul Viele and trained by Alex Giuliani, OK Braveheart (Bettors Delight-Color Me Beachy) now has seven wins in 2013 and $73,296 in the bank. The victory also pushed the seven-year-old's lifetime earnings to $554,919.

Besides guiding OK Braveheart to a $19.20 win payout, Holliday completed a driving double as he scored with Mattigician, who returned $30 for the win.

Ron Beback Kr. had a triple while Shawn McDonough, Kevin Cummings and David McNeight III each posted two wins apiece.

There will be racing on Tuesday and Wednesday night starting at 6:30 p.m., but no on-track wagering will be accepted as Batavia Downs prepares for its opening of the new video lottery terminal area that will located on the ground floor, on Friday. Wagers came be made via the Batavia ITW simulcast center, Off-Track Betting, Batavia Bets or other simulcast outlets. The races can be seen as well on Time-Warner Cable, Channel 98 in Rochester and surrounding areas.

(Batavia Downs)