Louisville GB improved on her already-high victory “batting average” on Monday afternoon, March 17 at Pocono Downs at Mohegan Pennsylvania, winning the $24,286 conditioned distaff pacing feature in 1:54.4 over a track rated “good,” with a strong backstretch headwind on a day with the mercury hovering around 40.
Louisville GB, who has not drawn on the left side of the gate now in five 2025 starts, had to leave from the outside post eight here, and driver Tyler Buter spotted her fifth on the first turn, then after a :28.2 quarter moved her uncovered in front of the stands. She grinded up during middle splits of :57.3 and 1:26, and despite the rugged trip the Great Britain-bred mare by Sweet Lou just kept eating up racetrack, winding up a 2 1/2-length winner. Stonecoldtreachery and Southern Sugar rounded out the top three finish order.
Louisville GB has now won four of five starts this season while running her stateside record to six for seven and her lifetime tallies to 13 in 25 starts. She is trained by Robert Cleary for New York owner Kenneth Jacobs.
Horses base-tagged at $28,571 on Monday raced their third and final preliminary in their Game of Claims Pacing Series group in five $17,143 divisions. No one had been able to win in both of the earlier prelim legs; here all five winners had previously taken one leg of the series, but one of them, the only undefeated series horse of that fivesome, won’t be in the final, and one, the only winner in the second prelim who repeated on Monday, will be changing barns after a claim for the $20,000 USD series championship seven days hence.
Ben Solo won two weeks ago, but then the Huntsville gelding was not entered in the second leg, which according to Game Of Claims rules made him ineligible for the final. Ben Solo, claimed out of the first Game Of Claims race, again overcame the outside post seven in 1:56.1 for driver Jim Pantaleano and his new connections of trainer Jacob Pantaleano and owner Sam Dalia, and now has three straight winning starts.
After a second the first week, the Heston Blue Chip gelding Blowin Smoke was victorious in the second leg while being claimed, and with Anthony Napolitano driving, he added a 1:55.2 win on Monday tying him for second round series speed honours, at the end of his brief stay with trainer Matias Ruiz (a conditioning doubler, both with “A-Nap”) and owner Jose Cervantes as the only Monday winner going to a new home.
The other 1:55.2 series winner was Tellsitsabb, a Tellititlikeitis gelding who was claimed both after a win the first week and after tiring in the middle leg. Tellitsabb won at first asking for trainer Hunter Oakes (also a a doubler) and owner Carmen Iannacone, and he was driven by three-time defending Pocono driving champion Matt Kakaley, who visited Victory Lane five times on the frosty card, including with both of Oakes’s winners.
Kakaley was also behind the JK Endofanera gelding TJs Indy Pacer, who despite a first and then a second in the series was let go at 40-1, resulting in an un-Kakaley-like win payoff of $83 after he conquered his field from the outside post eight for trainer Darren Taneyhill and owner Mark Jakubik. The 1:57 winner was one of two Monday winners unclaimed during the prelims.
Jim Pantaleano added a second Game Of Claims victory with another horses who did not change hands in the prelims, the Captaintreacherous gelding Shipshape, who after a first and then a fourth bounced back to winning form in 1:56 for trainer Justin Pirillo and owner Gianna Pirillo. The Pirillos haltered the horse for $8,696 at The Meadows on Feb. 5 and have since earned $23,970 with him.
No fewer than 11 $9,000 USD divisions of the second prelim of the Game Of Claims Pacing Series for horses base-tagged for $12,500 USD are scheduled for Tuesday, with all nine of the first round winners coming back and being joined by dropdowns from the Monday series who may find better fortune against easier opposition. There will also be a carryover into the last race High 5 wager.
(With files from PHHA / Pocono)