Drama Act was a dominant winner in the first of four $40,000 divisions in the opening round of the Blue Chip Matchmaker Series for pacing mares at Yonkers Raceway on Friday night (March 18).
The Ron Burke-trained mare led virtually wire-to-wire for driver George Brennan and sprinted a final quarter in 27 seconds flat at the end of the 1:52.2 mile.
The Bethinator and Lit De Rose left inside of Drama Act, with Lit De Rose securing the front for trainer/driver Pat Lachance late on the opening bend. Brennan had Drama Act move alertly to take command before the quarter and the pair were able to set fractions of :27.2 and :57.2 for the opening half with little movement. The Bethinator (Tim Tetrick) tried to attack without cover going to the three-quarters, but Drama Act flashed through a 1:25.2 three-quarters and marched away from all her rivals. Lit De Rose was clear for second, with 46-1 shot La Bella Vita N (Marcus Miller) moving along the pylons for third.
Sent off as the 2-5 choice, Drama Act returned $2.80, $2.10 and $2.10 across the board. Lit De Rose paid $2.90 and $2.80 to place and show, with La Bella Vita N returning $6.40 to show. The exacta returned $6.20, with the triple a healthy $62.50 with the longshot finishing third.
The OK Corral owns Drama Act, a five-year-old daughter of Well Said that won for the 23rd time in her career.
The Stratton brothers -- driver Jordan and trainer Cory -- teamed up to post a mild upset in the second $40,000 division with 9-2 choice Easy To Please.
Jordan Stratton blasted out of the gate with the four-year-old New York-sired Easy To Please from post seven and drove right into the pocket behind speedster Sweet Heaven late on the opening turn. Sweet Heaven and driver Dexter Dunn carved out the :27.1 opening quarter and were still in command through the 56 second opening half. Best Head West, the 4-5 choice with Matt Kakaley, tried to go coverless into the third turn but stalled on the backstretch as Sweet Heaven sped to three-quarters in 1:24.2. Stratton seized the opportunity to pull into the final turn with Easy To Please and the daughter of Roll With Joe was full of pace, disposing the pacesetter and cruising home in 1:52.3, with Best Head West closing belatedly for second. Bolt Of Beauty and Marcus Miller rallied up the pylons for third, with Sweet Heaven fading to fourth.
Cory Stratton trains and co-owns Easy To Please along with Our Three Sons Stable LLC.
The winner returned $11.20, $3.90 and $3.10 across the board. Best Head West returned $2.20 and $2.10, with Bolt Of Beauty paying $5.40 on the end. The exacta was worth $26.80 and the triple $140.50.
Dragon Roll and driver Todd McCarthy bravely held off two determined rivals in the deep stretch to capture the third Blue Chip Matchmaker division.
McCarthy had Dragon Roll off alertly from post four and secured the front from Blue Ivy off the opening bend. McCarthy guided Dragon Roll through first half fractions of :27 and :55.3, with two-time O'Brien Award winner Scarlett Hanover (Yannick Gingras), last year’s Jugette champion, on the move early without cover, followed by Miss You N (Dunn). The pace picked up noticeably on the backstretch, with Scarlett Hanover working closer to the leader and providing live cover through three-quarters in 1:24 flat.
Dragon Roll, owned and trained by Ricky Bucci, put some distance between herself and pocket-sitter Blue Ivy into the homestretch, with Miss You N and Dunn coming wide on the final turn and making up ground quickly. Along the pylons, Racine Bell and Jason Bartlett were moving quickly, but neither challenger was able to get the better of a determined Dragon Roll, who stopped the timer in 1:52.1 for her fourth win in seven starts this year. Racine Bell was second, with Miss You N settling for third after the overland journey.
A five-year-old and second daughter of Roll With Joe to capture a Blue Chip Matchmaker division, Dragon Roll returned $7.20, $3.60 and $2.90 across the board. Racine Bell paid $3.30 and $2.70, with Miss You N paying $5.10 to show. The winning exacta was worth $19.40, with the triple coming in at $107.00.
Mystical Carrie was up in the final stride to capture the final $40,000 division for Marcus Miller, tracking down 2-5 favourite Karma Seelster on the wire in a 1:52.3 mile.
Karma Seelster and Jordan Stratton took charge early, racing three-wide into the first turn overtaking the eventual winner and Jody (Brennan) in the process. Karma Seelster set fractions of :27.3, :56.2, and 1:24 virtually unopposed in the field of six. Mystical Carrie sat third most of the trip and Miller was able to come out first-over into the final turn, where the five-year-old daughter of Tellitlikeitis accelerated before chasing down the winner late. Keep Rockin A and drive Tim Tetrick shadowed the winner's cover and also rallied late but could only manage third. Mystifying (Austin Siegelman) finished fourth.
Trained by Erv Miller for owner Mystical Marker Farms LLC., Mystical Carrie won for the second time in seven starts this year and returned $9.90, $2.60 and $2.10 across the board. Favoured Karma Seelster returned $2.10 and $2.10, with Keep Rockin A's show price at $3. The exacta was $16.80, and the triple came back at $58.
The opening leg of the MGM Borgata Pacing Series for free-for-allers, with five $50,000 divisions, is scheduled for Monday night (March 21) as part of a 12-race program at Yonkers. There will be a Pick 6 carryover of $1,284.41 on the card, which gets underway at 6:55 p.m.
(With files from Yonkers Raceway)