On Tuesday, March 4, Rich And Miserable secured the 56th victory of his career by winning the $18,116 featured trot on a mild afternoon at Pocono Downs at Mohegan Pennsylvania—where he has earned exactly half (28) of his lifetime wins.
Tyler Buter settled into his usual spot behind Rich And Miserable, guiding the veteran trotter into a stalking position after favoured College Tuition (Simon Allard) outpaced him off the gate. College Tuition reached the quarter in :28 before yielding to a retake by Rich And Miserable. He then set middle fractions of :57 and 1:25.3 while fending off persistent pressure from You Got It (George Napolitano Jr.), who endured a tough trip parked on the outside.
As You Got It continued his bid but couldn’t quite get by, Rich And Miserable sat patiently in the pocket before surging through the "Pocono Pike" late, collaring the pacesetter to win by a neck in 1:54.4. College Tuition held for second, while the game You Got It, despite his difficult journey, finished just a length behind in third.
Rich And Miserable, a 10-year-old gelding by Explosive Matter out of Wishful Me, is trained by Todd Buter. The trotter has now amassed $887,228 in career earnings for owners Buter Farm Inc. and Lynette Buter.
In the $15,942 co-featured trot, Kinnder Thinktwice capitalized on a perfect second-over trip to prevail by a neck in 1:54.3—just a tick faster than the featured event. The Wheeling N Dealin–Majestic Joy ridgling surged late to edge out the determined two-mover Purple Lord (Tyler Buter), while pacesetter Cassius Hanover (Matt Kakaley) finished just a length back in third.
Anthony Napolitano guided the winning favourite for trainer Susan Marshall, who co-owns with John Marshall.
Seven sophomore pacing colts eligible for their division of the Bobby Weiss Series, which begins on March 29, competed in a maiden event, where Federer delivered an impressive victory. The Captaintreacherous–Sweetest Emotion colt made his seasonal debut in just his second career purse start.
Driven by Jack Pelling, the three-year-old sat sixth at the half before unleashing a powerful :26.4 third-quarter move to get into contention. He then pressed and surged past a breaking leader before holding off the debuting favourite, Captain Conan (Tyler Buter), by half a length to secure a maiden mark of 1:53.4. Brett Pelling trains the talented youngster and campaigns him under his Pelling Racing LLC banner.
George Napolitano Jr. was the day’s top driver, scoring five victories to close the gap on meet leader Tyler Buter, who picked up three wins on the card and 10 over the three-day racing week. The standings now sit at 18-16 in Buter’s favour.
On the training side, Peter Pellegrino was the only conditioner to notch a double on the card, solidifying his spot atop the standings in the early stages of the meet.
Racing resumes at Pocono on Saturday, March 8, with a 1 p.m. post time. The $25,000 USD fast-class pace, featuring Spring Inhis Step A, Charlie May, and Chase H Hanover among a field of seven, shares the spotlight with the final preliminary of the Game of Claims Pacing Series. Horses valued at $30,000 USD this week will battle for a spot in the $35,000 USD series championship on Saturday, March 15—while keen-eyed owners are expected to keep the claiming box active as they scout potential contenders.
(With files from PHHA/Pocono)