Driver Brett Beckwith piloted six winners on the 13-race card on Monday, March 17 at Saratoga Casino Hotel, including Open trotter Busting With Pride, to continue what has been an incredible start to the rising star's 2025 season at the Spa.
Busting With Pride was fresh off a lifetime-best 1:53.4 victory at The Meadowlands when he got post position five in the $21,429 Open Handicap Trot on Monday. Beckwith, who guided the Jackie Greene-trained trotter to his score in New Jersey, once again sat behind the five-year-old Resolve-Bustingattheseams gelding tasked with a first-over journey in the feature. Busting With Pride proved to be up to the task and wore down Deadline Hall (Aaron Byron), who had carved out the fractions of :28.1, :58.3 and 1:27.4 to three-quarters. Busting With Pride asserted himself in the stretch and trotted to a 1:57.4 victory over a track labelled ‘good.’ By
The Book (Jay Randall) was a beaten favourite for the fourth consecutive week while Deadline Hall held on to be third.
Sent postward as the third choice on the tote board, Busting With Pride paid $7.40 to win in what was his second victory in three tries on the season. He is owned by New York's Kellogg Racing Stables and Jackie Greene Stables. Busting With Pride completed a double on the day for Greene and Kellogg Racing Stables.
Beckwith opened the afternoon card winning with Castyourcrown ($10.40), the first of three Monday winners from the Paul Zabielski stable. The 2024 U.S. Rising Star Award recipient also drove But Why ($6.50) for conditioner Scott Mongeon, Ikon Vang DK ($2.40), who is trained by his mother Melissa Beckwith, Enhance Yourcalm N ($4) for the Michael Eaton stable and Cash Me Out ($3.90) for trainer Michael Traylor.
Live harness racing continues on Tuesday afternoon with a matinee starting at 12 p.m.
(With files from Saratoga Casino Hotel)