After having won three consecutive starts at the Downs at Mohegan Sun Pocono, Queen Of All shipped into Massachusetts and extended her streak to four after winning the $20,000 Open Trot at Plainridge Park on Friday afternoon (July 22).
Dismissed at 9-1 despite her current streak, Queen Of All (Bruce Ranger) took a garden spot seat behind Blue Knight (Drew Campbell), who took a quick early lead. With no credible threat from the rear, Blue Knight cut honest fractions of :27, :56.3 and 1:24.3 heading into the last turn. Halfway through that bend, Ranger tipped Queen Of All and she took control in a matter of strides. At the top of the stretch, Queen Of All was clear and pulled away by 3-1/2 lengths as Ranger sat chilly on a hot afternoon and won in 1:53.3.
The win was the sixth win of the year from 14 starts for Queen Of All ($21.20), who is owned by William Hart and trained by Lance Hudson.
Driver Kevin Switzer Jr. and trainer Elisha Lafreniere teamed up to score the driver/trainer hat trick and lead their respective categories on Friday. They were partners in victory with Ubanji (1:56.4, $6.40), Touch Of Dragon (1:53, $10.80) and Spell Cuteypie (1:56.4, $8.20).
With the ongoing heat wave in the northeast, Plainridge Park has been forced to make a change in the upcoming live racing schedule. The special Sunday afternoon (July 24) Grand Circuit card featuring the $250,000 Spirit of Massachusetts Trot has been postponed due to forecasted high temperatures. That card will now be held on Monday (July 25) and the card that was originally scheduled for Monday will be moved to Tuesday (July 26). Post time for both days will be 4 p.m. All previously scheduled activities for Spirit Day are still expected to occur on Monday.
Free Spirit of Massachusetts Day full past performance race programs, as well as programs for all live race days, can be downloaded by visiting the track's website at plainridgeparkcasino.com and clicking the "Racing" tab.
(Plainridge Park)