Iam Bonasera unleashed a strong closing kick as he rallied three-wide off cover to produce an 11-1 upset in the $32,000 Open 1 Pace at the Meadowlands Racetrack
on Saturday night.
With early speedster Presidential Order (Richie Silverman) putting in some steps around the first turn, Pilgrims Toners (Brandon Simpson) crossed down in front to take command with Southwestern Dream (Andy Miller) rolling up to drop into the pocket during the :27-second opening quarter.
As Pilgrims Toner raced down the backstretch, he was confronted by River Shark (Pat Berry), who swept up to take over command before the :55.1 half-mile mark. At that point, Tony Hall made his move sending Iam Bonasera first up from fourth. The four-year-old son of Cole Muffler picked up cover as Pilgrims Toner pulled the pocket approaching three-quarters in 1:23.2.
Angling three-wide coming into the stretch, Iam Bonesera hauled down River Shark using a :26.4 final frame to prevail by one and a quarter lengths in 1:50.3. Late closers Foreign Officer (Brian Sears) and One More Laugh (Ray Schnittker) finished second and third over River Shark.
Iam Bonasera paid $24.60 for the 11-1 upset. The win was his first of the season in three starts for trainer Ron Burke and Illinois owners John Carver and Bert Hochsprung. The 12-time career winner boosted his life's savings to $383,337 with his winning effort.
Later on the card, Silent Swing, driven by Andy Miller, went wire-to-wire to win the $23,500 Open 2 Pace by two lengths in 1:49.3, two-fifths of a second off his lifetime mark. Razzle Dazzle (Richie Silverman) used a :25.4 final quarter to catapult himself into the runner-up position, and Digital Z Tam (Michel Lachance) finished third.
The nine-year-old Northern Luck gelding earned his third win in nine seasonal starts for trainer Mark Ford, who co-owns with Campbellville, Ont. resident David Shea. He paid $3.40 to win as the popular choice.
Brian Sears drove five winners on the 13-race program, teaming with George Teague for one of his three training tallies.