On the heels of an impressive sophomore season, Bolt The Duer returned from winter hibernation and looked impressive Thursday morning at Pocono Downs in his first qualifier of the season for trainer Peter Foley.
Mark MacDonald was reunited with Bolt The Duer, who sat third through first-half fractions of :28.4 and :58.2 before going into attack mode. The son of Ponder-Wonderbolt raced first-over going into the backstretch, and he was second on the outside at the three-quarter pole in 1:25.1. The pacer then used a :28-second final frame to win by 1-1/2 lengths in 1:53.2.
“Bolt The Duer was real sharp this morning at Pocono. He was strong and looks like he has filled out nice. Paced a very easy 1:53.2 off a half in :58.4,” stated driver Mark MacDonald on his Twitter account following the qualifying victory.
Owned by All Star Racing Inc of Towaco, NJ, Bolt The Duer assembled a 9-4-0 record from 19 trips postward last season while banking more than $900,000. The career winner in excess of $1.1 million celebrated major victories in the $500,000 Delvin Miller Adios, the $415,820 Messenger Stakes, the $250,000 KYSS Final and the $130,000 Cleveland Classic.