Evolution Tour won wire-to-wire while Fast Tony had to edge Transforming Joy at the wire in Monday’s second of two $20,000 Delaware Standardbred Breeders Fund divisions for freshman colt and gelding pacers.
The combination of driver Tim Tetrick and Jim King training for JoAnn Looney King struck for the third straight time with Evolution Tour, as the Roddy Bags Again-Rare Filly gelding lowered his lifetime record to 1:52.4 . Evolution Tour was followed by Own It (Ross Wolfenden) and Sea Bags (Tony Morgan).
Evolution Tour is now four wins in seven starts with three second-place finishes for a $66,550 bankroll.
In the second DSBF prelim, Slick Tony sat second behind Transitioning Joy (Montrell Teague) until turning for home. The duo battled side-by-side down the lane until Russell Foster got Slick Tony up by a head in the :27.3 stretch drive to win in 1:52. American First (Jeff Fout) was third.
For breeder, owner, trainer George Leager, it was the eighth win with two seconds in 10 races and put the colt into six figures in the money-earned column at $101,797.
Now the two-year-old male pace final is set for next week’s Super Thursday card (Nov. 30) when all four $100,000 DSBF Finals join the $300,000 (est.) Hap Hansen Progress Pace Final.
In the $14,000 feature trot, it appeared Nothing But Nice would be hard to beat with a 4-length lead turning for home, but Common Parlance and Sean Bier came storming on the outside to catch the leader deep in the lane for a 1:56 triumph. Petrossian (Foster) closing along the passing lane finished second in from of Nothing But Nice, third.
Crissy Bier conditions the Crazed-Angevine gelding owned by Wade Wyatt and Francis DiMondi.
(With files from Dover Downs)