After reeling off four consecutive sub-1:50 wins in New Jersey, None Bettor A ($3.60) won his Harrah's Philadelphia debut in similar fashion, posting a 1:49.2 victory in a $30,000 Great Northeast Open Series event for pacers on Sunday afternoon (June 2).
The six-year-old Bettors Delight gelding yielded to Tiger Thompson N (driven by Dexter Dunn) on the first turn before Joe Bongiorno sent him forward in the two-path to clear just beyond the :26.2 first quarter. From there, he maintained a strong pace through middle splits of :54.3 and 1:21.3 before fielding a first-over challenge from Duplicated N (Tim Tetrick) on the far turn.
Duplicated N gained to within three-quarters of a length at the top of the stretch, but None Bettor A responded in kind to maintain his lead off the home turn — only for a second challenge to emerge in the form of Tiger Thompson N up the open stretch. Bongiorno kept None Bettor A to his task, and the pair prevailed by a hard-earned half length. Tiger Thompson N was a narrow second over Duplicated N, who completed an all-Down Under trifecta.
None Bettor A (#2) parries late challenges from either side in Great Northeast Open Series action at Harrah’s Philadelphia on Sunday, June 2, 2019.
Jenn Bongiorno trains 21-time winner None Bettor A for Joe P Racing LLC and Oldford Racing LLC.
In the sub-featured event, an $18,000 top-level conditioned pace, Im A Big Deal ($6.60) earned a second consecutive win over Harrah's Philadelphia and the 11th of his career, pushing clear early and controlling a strong pace throughout for a 1:50.1 score. As he did last week, Dexter Dunn drove the four-year-old son of Somebeachsomewhere for trainer Chris Ryder.
The fifth-race Jackpot Hi-5 yielded a dividend of $4,699.06 when a 12-1 upset from Itsonlyrocknroll A ($27.80, Larry Stalbaum, 1:51.3) keyed a 4-9-1-5-2 winning combination held by just one player.
Live racing returns to Harrah's Philadelphia on Wednesday (June 5); post time is 12:25 p.m. (EDT).
(Harrah’s Philadelphia)