On a dreary Monday evening which felt more like the last of April than the first of June, Mary Larrimore's Believe This Bob ($2.90) staved off two late threats en route to a 1:51.2 victory in the featured $14,000 Open Pace at Tioga Downs.
Coming off a handy 1:50.3 win the week prior, the seven-year-old Beach Romeo gelding made an early push to the fore, clearing Thatll Be the Rei (driven by Jim Marohn, Jr.) on the first turn. While he had to work to achieve the lead in a :26.2 initial quarter, Believe This Bob was able to rate a :55.1 half before maintaining his uncontested lead on the backstretch.
Heading to the far turn, Road Untraveled (Mike Simons) began a two-wide push, progressing after Believe This Bob passed the three-quarters mark in 1:23.2 while maintaining his one and a half-length lead. At the top of the stretch, Aaron Byron called upon the odds-on pacesetter for all he had, working through the final 150 yards to stave off a late bid from Thatll Be the Rei. While those two dueled, Road Untraveled dove to the pegs to sustain his rally, proving to be the equal of Thatll Be the Rei in a place dead heat – but neither able to catch Believe This Bob, who prevailed by a long neck to half a length.
Joe Skowyra trains Believe This Bob, who scored his second Open win at Tioga in as many starts.
Byron scored a driving hat trick on the 10-race card, as did Jim Marohn, Jr.
Racing continues at Tioga on Friday evening (June 5), with first-race post time scheduled for 6:15 p.m. Eastern Time. The Friday card features the third round of the United States vs. Spain amateur driving competition, which visits two other tracks in New York State before concluding in the Southern Tier.
(Tioga Downs)