Later Dudes and driver Trace Tetrick blasted to the top and built a sizable cushion to survive on the lead and win the $42,857 Open Pace, while trainer Tony Dinges scored a training grand slam at Oak Grove Racing, Gaming & Hotel on Monday, March 31.
Leaving from Post 5, Tetrick cleared pylon-starter Congressional (Verlin Yoder) past a :27 first quarter and soon held a wide lead once Congressional lost stride by the grandstand for the first time. Tip Top Cat (Brandon Bates) chased to tighten from an inherited pocket while stablemate Later Dudes cruised to a :55 half and to three-quarters in 1:23.1. Though holding a decent lead spinning for home, Tetrick implored Later Dudes to carry his speed through the stretch and he held just enough to win in 1:51.1, three-quarter lengths better than hard-grinding Tip Top Cat in second. This Kit Rocks (Joey Putnam) rallied for third, another three lengths behind.
An eight-year-old gelding by Sweet Lou out of Lovely Assistant, Later Dudes has now won 35 races from 162 starts and earned $771,850. Ron Burke trains the gelding for Burke Racing Stable LLC and Weaver Bruscemi LLC, also co-owners of the runner-up. He paid $8.38 to win.
Trainer Tony Dinges vaulted to the top of the standings on Monday with a training grand slam on the 12-race card. He scored early guiding 15-1 shot My Playmate GB (1:57.3; $33.44) to a virtual pillar-to-post win before returning to the winner's circle a few races later after capitalizing from a pocket ride with Legacys Casanova (2:00.3; $5.66). Dinges landed another off-the-speed win later on the card when delivering Checkonwilliam GB (1:54.2; $7.06) to victory before handing the lines to Trace Tetrick in the following race, where he won off a pocket trip with Laneside Logic GB (1:56; $6.50).
Zyler Maxwell, who will turn 19 next month, guided Dr. Felicia Herndon’s five-year-old pacing mare Saulsbrook Mabel ($4.10) to victory in a $15,714 race for the United States Harness Driving Club (USHDC). Trained by Darrell Moore, the Malicious-Southwind Oasis mare won in a seasonal best 1:57, using a :28.3 brush home to score by 3-1/2 lengths over Dontinvitemein (Tony Dinges), with Kizzzmelikeumissme (Peter Kleinhans) rallying for third.
Racing continues at Oak Grove on Tuesday, April 1 with a 12-race card. The first race post time at Oak Grove is 1:45 p.m. (CDT).
(With files from Oak Grove Racing & USHDC)