Ontario Sires Stakes graduate Write Me A Song (Jordan Stratton, $43.20) was both widest and fastest on Friday night (March 8), winning Yonkers Raceway’s $44,000 Filly and Mare Open Handicap Pace.
It was the final tune-up for many of these misses before the Blue Chip Matchmaker Series gets underway next Friday (March 15).
From post position No. 3, the lass with a north-of-the-border resume was away sixth. She saw Angels Pride (Brent Holland) get stung by first-‘19-try Twinkle (Dan Dube) through a :27.3 opening quarter-mile.
It was a :57.2 intermission before 8-5 favourite Delightfulmemphisn (Jason Bartlett), having already made one move, took out of fourth. She engaged Angels Pride in and out of a 1:25.3 three-quarters, while the eventual heroine had slipped out to work from second-over.
The diminishing lead for Angels Pride was a length-and-a-quarter off the final turn, with ‘Memphis’ moving in. That lass would win the battle, but lose the war as Write Me A Song surged past by a proboscis in 1:54.1. Delightfulmemphisn, a dead-heat (for third) duo of Twinkle/Angels Pride and Lakeisha Hall (George Brennan) rounded out the payees. Those five were separated by just a length-and-a-half at the wire.
For sixth choice Write Me a Song, a season-debuting four-year-old daughter of Sportswriter owned by William Hartt and trained by Lance Hudson, the win was her 11th in 20 career starts. The exacta paid $213, the triples returned $506 (Twinkle third) and $634 (Angels Pride third) and the superfectas paid $1,299 (Twinkle/Angels Pride third and fourth) and $2,243 (Angels Pride/Twinkle third and fourth).
(With files from Yonkers Raceway)