Hopefully the Buffalo Raceway keeper of track records had plenty of erasers on hand Saturday night (May 30).
Unicorn Hanover set two track records in the opener by going the mile in 1:52.4 in the $9,500 Open II Pace. He produced new standards for the all-age geldings and aged (5+) pacing divisions.
But Fireyourguns wasn't going to be outdone on the muggy night.
Not only did the six-year-old Fireyourguns (Mike Caprio) shatter the records just set by Unicorn Hanover in the previous race, he took it a step further by breaking the all-time track record with a sizzling 1:52 time in the $10,500 Open Pace. It broke the old mark of 1:52.3 notched by Steelhead Hanover back in 2012.
The records that were broken by Unicorn Hanover, and 15 minutes later by Fireyourguns, was the 1:53.1 time put up by Gimmebackmybullets for the all-age geldings in 2007 and the aged (5+) record of 1:53.2 scored by Lieback in 2006.
Returning to the races after a two-week layoff, Fireyourguns showed that his arsenal was fully loaded. Starting from the outside seven post, Caprio knew he was headed to the top and got there with relative ease with Fireyourguns as Cobble Beach (Kevin Cummings) put up mild resistance from the pylons.
"Before the race, [trainer] Terence McClory said you're leaving with him [Fireyourguns] tonight because he's a lot fresher right now," Caprio said.
After a rather soft opening quarter of :27.3, Caprio and Fireyourguns ($5.00) put a middle half mile of :56, hitting the three-quarter mark in 1:23.3. From there, it wasn't a matter of who was going to win, it was a matter of how fast.
"When I saw the time on the board at the three-quarter pole, I figured it was time to pull the plugs," Caprio said.
Fireyourguns went :28.2 in the final leg to score a three-length win over Cobble Beach. Western Alumni (Drew Monti) took the show spot.
Co-owned by McClory along with Jennifer and Robert Lowe, Fireyourguns is now a perfect three-for-three on the season, earning $17,500 in 2015 and $237,621 lifetime.
In the opener, Unicorn Hanover ($4.50) went three-wide down the backstretch the final time and pulled away to throttled down two-length victory over Bakken in a short-lived record time of 1:52.4.
After sitting fourth past the half-mile in :56 posted by Little Man Cam, Unicorn Hanover (Shawn McDonough) followed the first-over cover of Burton Blue Chip and then used the three-wide move to take command by two lengths at the top of the stretch, tripping the clock in a lifetime-best of 1:52.4. Bakken (Ray Fisher Jr.) took the second-place position while Peenie (Kevin Cummings) finished in third.
Owned by Mike Torcello and trained by Gerry Sarama, the eight-year-old gelded Unicorn Hanover (Four-Starzz Shark-Up Front Georgia) has now won twice in eight starts in 2015, winning $17,135 and $379,623 lifetime.
Racing will continue on Wednesday night at Buffalo Raceway with a 13-race card set for 5 p.m. The New York Sire Stakes returns with the three-year-old pacing fillies battling for $105,000 spread out among three divisions.
(With files from Buffalo Raceway)