The Mach Three gelding Rebellious gave driver Anthony Napolitano his sixth of seven winners on the Saturday, Oct. 13 card at The Downs at Mohegan Sun Pocono when he won the $21,500 featured pace in 1:51.3.
The three-year-old Hitman Hill, favoured against more seasoned rivals despite not having raced since his Little Brown Jug elimination, moved to the lead past the :26.2 opener and got a big breather to the :56.2 half. “Anthony Nap” had Rebellious second over by the 1:24.2 three-quarters clocking and through the lane the sharp pacer, still last at the stretch call, swept past everybody to claim a one-and-three-quarter length victory.
Michael Deters trains the winner of two straight and 13 races overall in 2018, and co-owns him with Joel Warner; the pair purchased the late-bloomer after he started the 2018 season hot at Pompano for Team Zeron.
In the $18,000 claiming handicap pace co-feature, Onlythetuffsurvive was the first horse to show off the gate but, with constant lead changes and challenges, he found himself fourth-inside past the three-quarters. But in the stretch the innermost part of the passing lane opened to the gelded son of A Stud Named Sue and driver Marcus Miller launched his horse to a 1:52.1 victory.
Onlythetuffsurvive had been second five-straight times before going offstride in his last outing and got back to winning form in a big way for trainer Donald Billings and Samuel Abdoo. He paid $51.20 to win.
Anthony Napolitano’s brother George, the meet’s leading driver, had three wins on his own Saturday, putting “the Nap brothers” in double digits for the 13-race card.
Pocono goes into high Breeders Crown gear on Monday, Oct. 15 when both all supplemental entries must be made and the fields for the two-year-old eliminations, to be raced Friday, will be drawn. Elims for the three-year-olds and the older divisions will be drawn Tuesday and raced Saturday.
(With files from the PHHA)