Jaymes McAssey finished second in the trainer standings in 2024 at Saratoga Casino Hotel and the standout conditioner didn’t waste any time getting his ’25 campaign off to a good start with his first local victory in the $21,739 Open Handicap Pace during the Sunday, Feb. 2 opening day program.
The McAssey-trained The Good Doctor teamed up with last year’s leading driver, Brett Beckwith, in the five-year-old pacer’s first ever try in Saratoga's Open class. Making his first seasonal start off a qualifier on Jan. 29, The Good Doctor was bet down to 8-5 odds as one of the co-favourites and got away fifth despite drawing post two for his return outing. Beckwith sat patiently in lap one before cutting The Good Doctor loose and picking up the cover of co-favourite Just Plain Loco (Greg Merton) approaching the three-quarter pole. The move around the final turn was enough to cement a winning result for The Good Doctor, who paced away by a decisive 3-1/2 lengths in a mile clocked in 1:54.2. Veteran Just Plain Loco was a strong second in the feature while 12-1 shot General Montana N (Mitch Cushing) earned the show spot.
The Good Doctor, a 10-time winning son of American Ideal out of V String, is owned by Morrison Racing Stables of Indiana, Pennsylvania. After making a successful Saratoga debut in December, he is now two-for-three since joining the McAssey stable and paid $5.20 to win.
McAssey went back-to-back on the 14-race card when five-year-old pacing gelding Kassius Key and driver Shawn Gray scored on the lead in 1:58.3 in an $11,594 pacing event.
Live harness racing continues on Monday at Saratoga with a matinee set to begin at 12 noon.
(With files from Saratoga Casino Hotel)