Three invaders from the North were sent off as the favourites in Friday’s (Dec. 23) $22,500 handicap trot at Harrah’s Philadelphia, but it was the two local horses who defended the home track’s honour with pride, as Focus Pocus held off Baldaquin in 1:57.3 over a “sloppy +3” track in freezing temperatures and into a fierce stretch headwind.
Willy Walton grabbed early command, with Focus Pocus maintaining the pocket through early fractions of :28 and :59.1. Weslynn Quest started uncovered near the half but quickly lost stride, leaving favoured Eurobond to have to go up first-over (with a tailwind) to challenge through and past the 1:27.2 three-quarters, with Baldaquin on that one’s back.
Late on the far turn Eurobond broke, and Focus Pocus’s driver George Napolitano Jr. was quick to move to the outside to try to diminish any momentum advantage that the swinging-wide Baldaquin may have gained. The tactic worked and the Muscle Massive gelding Focus Pocus won by a half length while boosting his seasonal earnings to $133,902 for trainer Jeff Cullipher, co-owner with Pollack Racing LLC.
Inaminute Hanover, a 1:52.4 trotter making his second Stateside start, sat on the rail most of the way in the $16,200 co-featured trot, moved out behind favoured pocketsitter Smoking Jet, then caught that one by a half length in 2:00.4 in the frigid conditions (the track had just been upgraded to “good +2”). Andrew McCarthy had the winning drive behind the victorious Bar Hopping gelding, who is trained by Jake Huff for Beauty Bridle Racing Stable Inc.
The Father Patrick sophomore filly Adore Me went straight to the top in the bitter conditions, then held together to defeat pocketsitting Pencils Down by a half length to take the $14,400 top trot for developing horses in 1:59.1 (“good” but back to “+3” as the mercury fell further). Andy Miller drove the winner to her second straight victory for trainer Julie Miller and Windsong Stable.
Simon Allard, a clear second in the Philly driver standings behind runaway leader Tim Tetrick, topped Friday’s driving colony by guiding home four winners.
Harrah’s Philly will be right back racing on Christmas Eve Saturday (Dec. 24), with a first post of noon, featuring a very solid array of fast-class pacers, including the “rubber match” between Pat McGarry A and Colossal Stride A in the $22,500 featured fast-class handicap pace. There will also be a carryover of $1715.88 in the Pick-5 bet in races five through nine. The season will conclude next week with a 12:25 card on Friday and a 2:30 p.m. card on New Year Eve’s Saturday (Dec. 31). Program pages for all Philly cards will be available on the PHHA website.
(PHHA / Harrah's Philadelphia)