The common denomination in the featured events at Pocono Downs at Mohegan Pennsylvania on Tuesday (July 29) afternoon was Philadelphia attorney and megaowner Howard Taylor, who owned both pacer Inflation Proof and trotter Shinkansen as they finally found Victory Lane after some near-misses.
Inflation Proof had had four seconds and two thirds in his last six starts, but he finally made a breakthrough and lowered his mark to 1:51.3 while winning the $19,178 headline pace. The Tall Dark Stranger gelding was put on the lead and set fractions of :26.3, :55.1, and 1:23.2, then came home well enough to withstand Setheworldonfire by 1-1/4 lengths for Tyler Buter, the meet’s leading driver who had four successes on the Tuesday card, trainer Hunter Oakes, and owners Taylor and Chuck Pompey.
Taylor also had a partner on trotting top-class winner Shinkansen, trainer Bill “Moon” Mullin – but we use the word “had” because the Sebastian K S gelding was haltered for $26,027 out of the $18,493 claiming handicap event for diamondgaiters. Shinkansen also showed for seconds in his last six starts, but he did show one win, from the pocket, and that was the tactic driver Simon Allard was able to use on Tuesday as the pair came up the inside and held off closer Vegas Ticket by three parts of a length. Taylor and Mullin had claimed Shinkansen for the same price from his previous race, so for his one-start stay for the partnership he earned $9,589 minus expenses.
Besides Tyler Buter’s four-bagger, a day with more than one win at Pocono was enjoyed by the following six horsemen who had a pair of victories: drivers Simon Allard, Jim Marohn Jr., and George Napolitano Jr., and trainers Robert Baggitt Jr., Hunter Oakes, and Cory Stratton.
Racing resumes at Pocono on Saturday (Aug. 2, Hambletonian Day) at 1 p.m., two weeks before the track’s signature Sun Stakes Sunday; this Sunday’s 6 p.m. card will feature $217,966 USD of stakes action in the second preliminary round of the Pennsylvania Sire Stakes and Stallion Series for two-year-old pacing colts.
(PHHA / Pocono)