One horse who figured - Meladys Monet - and one who didn’t - Big N Bad - hogged the headlines Saturday night, winning Yonkers Raceway’s $48,000 co-features.
Meladys Monet won the Open Handicap Trot, prevailing in a three-horse photo over Zooming (Tyler Buter) and pace-setting, 13-10 favourite Luminosity (George Brennan). That one was out a long way before making the lead from Not Afraid (Dan Dube). Quick early intervals of :27.4 and :56.3 softened Luminosity up, so even a :29.1 third quarter (1:25.3) and a two-length lead into the lane wasn’t enough.
Meladys Monet, sent outside his six rivals, closed from third-over. He picked off Zooming by a head in 1:55.3, with Luminosity fading to third, beaten a half-length. World Cup (Brent Holland) and Sevruga (Pat Lachance) were best-of-the-rest, minor moolah entities.
For second choice Meladys Monet, a six-year-old Revenue S gelding trained by Kevin McDermott for owner Melady Enterprises, it was her 11th win in 23 seasonal starts (season earnings over $300,000, career in excess of $700,000).
The weekly pacing feature, a blind draw this time around, did no favours for Big N Bad. No problem. Leaving hard from the eight-hole, he was forced even wide when Crombie A (Holland) pulled pocket early.
Undaunted, Big N Bad found the lead and kept going (:26.4, :55.4, 1:23.4, 1:51.4) . After racing his eyeballs out a week ago only to get nailed late, Big N Bad closed the sale here, defeating a cone-skimming The Real One (Lachance) by neck. Third went to Crombie A, with Dynamic Youth (Brennan) and Sapphire City (Jordan Stratton) settling for the small change.
Great Vintage (Dube), as the 6-5 favourite, couldn’t get out of his own way at the outset and finished last.
For seventh choice Big N Bad, a five-year-old Badlands Hanover gelding trained by Jennifer Sabot for owner Vincent Laurenzo, it was his eighth win in 26 seasonal ’15 tries.
(Yonkers Raceway)