Gone Girl, a 7-1 shot on the betting board, and driver Jeremy Smith waited patiently for the newly installed ‘Hollywood Boulevard’ (inside passing lane) then used it to full advantage to win the $26,000 Mares Open on Friday at Hollywood Dayton Raceway.
Drafting behind pacesetter Sweet Heaven (Tony Hall) the entire way, Gone Girl was pinned in by an outer flow headed by favourites Sugar Dance (Brett Miller) and Pace Baby Pace (Chris Page). With nowhere to go while watching fractional times flip up :26.4, :55.1 and 1:22.4, Smith had no alternative but to wait for the stretch and hope he’d be close enough to do some damage along the inside.
When the opportunity arose, Smith zoomed inside and swept to the lead in deep stretch. Pace Baby Pace finished second and Sugar Dance was third. All seven of the talented mares in the field were within three lengths on the finish line.
Trainer Mark Gillenwater also owns Gone Girl, whose seasonal win total soared to 11 with 2021 earnings of $110,050. Lifetime the seven-year-old daughter of Dragon Again has banked $369,169. The winner’s victory total has grown to 34 in just 147 career starts.
Racing resumes at Hollywood Dayton on Saturday (Nov. 6) with a 14-race program slated to start at 4 p.m.
(Hollywood Dayton)