The weather was warm at Freehold Raceway this Friday (March 12), but Eric Abbatiello was sizzling. He piloted home six winners on the 11-race card.
The highlight of his day came in the featured Preferred Handicap trot, where he drove Casino Cutie It to a 13/1 upset win. He rated her in fourth place in the early stages, while Life Well Lived set the early fractions. As they passed the five-eighths point, favoured Kinda Lucky Lindy moved first-over to challenge the leader, and Abbatiello grabbed cover with his mare. At the top of the stretch, he flipped Casino Cutie It three-wide, and she stormed down the center of the track for the victory. The final time was 1:56.1 over a fast track.
Casino Cutie It has now won twice this year, with both of her wins coming at Freehold. She's owned by Howard Taylor and trained by Tom Fanning.
That win was Abbatiello's fifth on the day. He began the day a winner, guiding Sheer Talent to victory in Race 1 for trainer Bruce Lauer. He then rattled off a natural hat trick a few races later, scoring in Race 4 with Dalton Did It for trainer Ted Suleski, Race 5 on Lionhead for owner/trainer Terry Morgan, and Race 6 with Rock Flush for owner/trainer Mike Fiumenero. In the eleventh race, Abbatiello wrapped up the day a winner, steering Johnny Fly Swatter to victory for trainer David Wiskow.
Abbatiello now has 21 wins on the Freehold season. With his big day, he surged from seventh to fourth in the driver standings.
Friday's card also saw a milestone win for owner/trainer Marianna Monaco. She sent out Powerful Pulse to victory in the ninth, with Joe Bongiorno in the sulky. Monaco has been driving since 2019, and began training horses earlier this year.
Live harness racing continues at Freehold on Saturday (March 13) starting at 12:30 p.m.
(Freehold)