Melodies Major has been nothing but spectacular thus far in his brief career, and he continued to sparkle on Wednesday night (July 18) at Buffalo Raceway by toppling the two-year-old pacing colt record with a 1:54.2 victory over Jack Nation in his New York Sire Stakes (NYSS) event.
Cruising to an easy 3-3/4 length win in his $53,500 division, Melodies Major ($2.10) crushed the old mark of 1:55.4 set in 2013 by Hes Watching.
In the other NYSS split, Bicorne Hanover went gate-to-wire in 1:56.3 and held off Jojos Place by three-quarters of a length.
But is was Melodies Major (Art Major-Hilarious) who stole the show. Driver Tyler Buter said after the race, "I drove him with two fingers. He's such a pleasure to drive. When I asked him to go, he just went faster."
Getting splits of :28.2, :57.1 and 1:26, Melodies Major never was asked for more in the lane as Buter tucked away the whip and enjoyed the view of the Buffalo Raceway homestretch. Despite being in cruise control, he still put up a :28.2 last panel. Jack Nation (Jim Morrill Jr.) took second while Covered Bridge (Mike Simons) nailed the show position.
Melodies Major is a perfect 3-for-3 in his brief career and has two track records now, with the first coming at Monticello on July 4 in 1:54.3. Owned by Martin Scharf and trained by Mark Ford, Melodies Major has put $80,000 in the bank already in 2018.
Bicorne Hanover (Kevin Cummings) took advantage of the inside draw and wired the field in a solid 1:56.3.
Leaving from the rail, Bicorne Hanover established fractions of :28.3, :58.2 and 1:28. Jojos Place (Jason Bartlett) made a valiant charge at the end but came up three-quarters of a length short at the line. Bean (Scott Coulter) took third place.
Co-owned by the Burke Racing Stable LLC, Weaver Bruscemi, James Martin and William Switala, Bicorne Hanover (Art Major-Boldnbrash Hanover) is trained by Ron Burke. It was the first victory in three starts this season for Bicorne Hanover, now a winner of $44,110 in 2018.
Murrow Boy (Drew Monti) was the fastest in the $15,000 Excelsior A Series races with a 1:55.4 time, returning a healthy $17.00 to his backers. Mark Witha K ($6.20) took the other leg with a 1:59 victory for Morrill.
Morrill, who completed the evening with a driving triple, captured the $6,400 Excelsior B event with a 1:58.4 win aboard Baby Maker Hanover ($5.10).
Cummings had a driving double while trainer Russell Bratt notched a pair of victories.
Racing will continue on Friday night (July 20) at 5 p.m. with a nine-race program scheduled, and the 2018 season will come to a close on Saturday evening (July 21) at 6 p.m. with a 10-race program set.
For more information, including the latest news, upcoming promotions, simulcast schedule, race replays, results and entries, go to www.buffaloraceway.com.
(Buffalo Raceway)