Jeffery P won his fifth open class trot in ten seasonal starts, capturing Monday’s $28,000 Open at Miami Valley in 1:53.2.
In addition to three wins in recent weeks at Miami Valley, the seven-year-old son of Full Count has also triumphed in the top trot classes at The Meadows and Northfield Park since the calendar turned to 2022. His earnings have climbed to $60,700 over that span. Tony Hall left the gate with alacrity, but relented to stablemate Perlucky (Chris Page) as the quarter was clocked in :27.2. Content with the pocket ride past the half in :56.2, Hall decided to pull to the outside as the field approached the 1:24.2 third stanza. A :29 closing kick was enough to hold off Shine All The Way (Jeremy Smith) and Flemsteen (Aaron Merriman).
A pair of six-year-old mares, Delilah Seelster (Tyler Smith) and Shake It Mary (Trace Tetrick), was next to cross the finish line. Ron Burke trains Jeffery P, who is owned by Burke Racing, Weaver Bruscemi and Phil Collura.
Monday also marked the start of the James K. Hackett Memorial Series at Miami Valley, the annual kickoff of the Ohio-sired stakes season.
The initial split, for sophomore trotting fillies, only attracted a field of eleven for a $20,000 elimination—with the top nine earning automatic berths in the $50,000 final next Monday (April 25).
Gabbys C Note (Merriman), the 2021 Ohio Sires Stakes champion who earned $243,150 with five wins in seven starts, began her sophomore campaign on a winning note as well. Merriman adeptly weaved through the bulky field from a second tier start and moved Gabbys C Note to the point at his first opportunity. The Triumphant Caviar filly, trained by Chris Beaver, held sway over Toes In The Water (Tetrick) and Stephanie Hill (Jeremy Smith) in 1:57 to establish herself as the strong favourite for next week’s lucrative championship race.
Beaver shares ownership of the winner with JoAnna Beaver and Steve Zeehandelar.
Racing resumes at Miami Valley on Tuesday afternoon at 4:05 p.m. Featured will be two $20,000 James K. Hackett Memorial eliminations for Buckeye bred three-year-old pacing fillies.
(Miami Valley Raceway)