After being hindered by severe road trouble in last week's Open at Yonkers, Rodeo Rock found clear sailing and bounced back decisively in Sunday afternoon's (Oct. 20) featured top-level conditioned pace at Harrah's Philadelphia.
The six-year-old Rock N Roll Heaven gelding floated into fourth on the first turn and patiently stalked a :27.1 first quarter set by Mikes Z Tam. Only after American Boy N cleared from the outer tier with a circuit to go did Eric Goodell give Rodeo Rock his cue, angling him first over just before a :55 half.
Rodeo Rock responded to Goodell's asking, powering away from American Boy N up the far side and sprinting to win in 1:50.3 over sloppy going. Mikes Z Tam emerged from traffic to save second, two-and-a-quarter lengths back, while 4-5 favourite Dealt A Winner sustained gradual progress after losing cover to take third.
Robert Cleary trains Rodeo Rock, a 28-time winner, for Royal Wire Products Inc. He paid $5.40 to win.
Rodeo Rock keyed a 6-1-4-5-8 combination in the afternoon's 20-cent Jackpot Hi-5, and multiple players connected for a $72.84 dividend. The carryover for Wednesday's (Oct. 23) fifth race mounts to $10,718.92.
Post time for the first of 13 races on Wednesday's card is 12:25 p.m. (EDT).
(Harrah's Philadelphia)