Smalltownthrowdown, by Cash Hall, was the champion of the three-year-old colt and gelding division of the New York Sire Stakes for trotters in 2016. Following his championship campaign, Smalltownthrowdown changed connections and moved to the stable of trainer Rene Allard.
The talented highstepper made his debut for Allard in the Sunday afternoon (July 16) feature at Saratoga Casino Hotel. After using two winning qualifiers as preps, Smalltownthrowdown had Post 3 in the $14,000 Open Trot on Sunday and moved out to the early lead with Billy Dobson in the sulky.
The favoured Cash Me Out (driven by Mark Beckwith) was relegated to the pocket and tracked the leader throughout. The six-horse feature saw a blanket finish with five of the six separated by only a neck at the wire.
When the dust settled, it was Smalltownthrowdown who emerged victorious in the mile, which was clocked in 1:55.2.
Boli (Wally Hennessey) hit the board for the ninth consecutive start as he finished second, while Cash Me Out had to settle for third after the scramble in the stretch.
Smalltownthrowdown paid $7.60 to win and started an exacta and triple that came back $45.60 and $122.50, respectively.
Live racing resumes on Thursday afternoon at Saratoga with a matinee that starts at 12:15pm.
(Saratoga Casino Hotel)