While driver Tim Tetrick posted four winners in the first five races on Wednesday afternoon (May 15) at Harrah’s Philadelphia and wound up with five on the card, he and his favoured horses were narrowly collared in photo finishes by a pair of "pocket rockets" in the day's featured events.
In the $16,000 featured pace, Handsoffmychips was sent to the lead by Tetrick to set fractions of :27.3, :56 and 1:23.1, but the Hes Gorgeous gelding Miss U Big Mike was lying in wait in the two-hole for driver Marcus Miller. The pair came up the inside to catch the favourite by a neck, with Miss U Big Mike lowering his mark 3-2/5 seconds with a 1:51.2 final clocking. Christie Collins conditions the winner, who has an enviable lifetime win rate of 28 per cent (16-for-58) for owner Irwin Kaplan.
In the $14,500 co-featured pace, Tony Morgan left strongly for the lead with Machiavelli, but Tetrick moved favourite Soto nearing the :27 quarter and hung up middle splits of :55.2 and 1:23.1. But again danger lurked to the chalk’s left, and the Somebeachsomewhere gelding Machiavelli had enough late pace to edge past Soto, also by a neck, in 1:51.2. The winner of $191,260 has now won four of his last eight starts for trainer Nick Surick and Dynasty Racing.
(with files from Harrah's Philadelphia)