After starting slow and finishing fast, Sidd Finch won his sixth race of the year in capturing the $27,397 Open trotting feature at Plainridge Park on Thursday afternoon, May 23.
Jim Hardy took Sidd Finch off the gate to sixth while Yucatan Party Man (Mitchell Cushing) wrestled the lead from Big Al M (Matty Athearn) and Big Box Hanover (Larry Stalbaum) after a three-horse, :27.3 melee to the quarter. The respite was brief for Yucatan Party Man as the outer flow formed heading to the half when Nothingbutadreamer (Brett Beckwith) and Sidd Finch led the charge in the breeze heading into the backstretch.
Nothingbutadreamer reached Yucatan Party Man at the five-eighths and Sidd Finch was right on his helmet and stayed there until the top of the last turn. That’s when Hardy tipped three-deep off cover and started to accelerate. At the top of the stretch, Sidd Finch was clear of Yucatan Party Man, but Big Al M had also cleared that one at the pylons and was trotting up a storm. Sidd Finch had the lead but Big Al M was closing fast; however, in the end not fast enough. Sidd Finch hung on by one-half length to win in 1:55.
With the win, Sidd Finch ($15.80) moved his lifetime earnings to $276,029 for owner John Barnard. Irwin Rosenthal trains the winner.
Earlier in the $23,288 conditioned trot, Enola (Heath Campbell) captured her fourth win in only five Plainridge starts this year after moving from fifth with cover from Emmajean Jellybean (Steve Wilson) at five-eighths in pursuit of the front-running Cruising Tom (Matty Athearn). Enola followed her mark until tipping three-wide as they started turning for home and kicked into gear. There was a three-horse dash the entire stretch with Cruising Tom battling the mares, Emmajean Jellybean and Enola. The cavalry charge went right to the wire where Enola bested her competition by a neck in 1:55.2, giving her a new lifetime mark.
Enola ($31) is owned by Burke Racing and Weaver Bruscemi, and is trained by Joe Nelson.
There was a big winner of the Wicked Hi-5 pentafecta in the sixth race when the single unique combination of 8-5-6-4-2 returned $7,483.39 for the 20-cent wager.
Bruce Ranger had a driving hat trick during the card while 11 different trainers each won one race apiece.
Racing resumes at Plainridge Park on Monday, May 27 with post time at 4 p.m.
(Standardbred Owners of Massachusetts)