Wehadababyetzaboy, fourth-inside and looking shuffled out of it going into the final turn of the $18,056 featured pace at Harrah’s Philadelphia on Sunday (Aug. 11) afternoon, found room mid-turn and finished explosively while four-wide to overhaul pacesetting favourite Lyons Steel by a length in 1:50.4.
Though the journey didn’t exactly go the winner’s way, the front end battles did. Water Sports Teen stepped away at a :26.3 clip to gain early command, only to yield to Lyons Steel, who passed the next two stations in :54.4 and 1:22.2, by the latter being joined by first-over second choice Captain Crusader A. The second-over couldn’t keep up as pacesetter and first-over battled, giving driver George Napolitano Jr. enough time to slip out and get Wehadababyetzaboy in high gear quickly for the victory for EVM Racing LLC.
The trainer of the winner is Chuck Crissman Jr., who is one of seven conditioners who are within four victories of the meet lead in the training ranks. Dean Eckley had a Sunday victory to tie Mark Akins and Per Engblom at 27; two behind them are Jeff Cullipher (one Sunday) and Izzy Estrada (two Sunday); and two more off the top are Crissman and Scott DiDomenico.
Yogi Sheridan scored a double in the three $10,274 divisions of the American Harness Drivers Club Pace. Sheridan’s first win on the day was in the first division when he overcame post eight with trainer Izzy Estrada's Ship Wreck Beach K to win in 1:54.2. Sheridan then scored another late-powering win in the second division behind Keep Us Happy in 1:55.1 for the Jose Ramos stable. Anthony Verruso romped in the other division with Dance Partner in 1:54.1 for trainer Bill MacKenzie and owners Alma Iafelice, Vincent Ali Jr. and Lawrence Miller.
Racing action resumes at Harrah’s Philadelphia on Thursday, Aug. 15 at 12:25 p.m., with two-year-old pacing fillies in state-sired action, and there’s a doozy of a division of the Sire Stakes, set for race nine. Papi Grad, who won her first three starts by a combined 26 lengths, each in 1:51.1, then won at the Indiana State Fair in 1:52 with a :26 final quarter, is the favourite, but only at 2-1. Set at 5-2 against her are Westwinds, who has won a Stallion Series race, a Pennsylvania All-Stars race and a Sire Stakes race in her undefeated career, and Beach Rules, who won her first and only start in 1:50.4 at Philly. Complementing the two Sire Stakes divisions will be five divisions of Stallion Series action, which will help local fans gather information for when these fillies return for their Championship as Philly hosts all eight finals on Sunday, Sept. 8.
(With files from PHHA/Harrah's Philadelphia & AHDC; photo of Wehadababyetzaboy from a previous win on Feb. 21 at The Meadows)