Pemberton and Paul Walker made strides in the stretch to move from the back of the pack to victory in the $32,000 Preferred 2 Trot at Woodbine Mohawk Park on Monday (Aug. 28) evening.
From post seven in the field of eight, Pemberton got away seventh off the car. Pikachu Hanover (Jonathan Drury) led the class to the opening panel in :26.4 and with some shuffling of the order of the top four, Tokyo Seelster took over en route to the half in :56. Pemberton continued in seventh with the best view of the field. Walker pulled his right line and moved Pemberton to the outside, but still sat seventh at the 1:23.4 three-quarters.
Perfetto (Dagfin Henriksen) was matched neck-and-neck with Patriarch Hanover (Doug McNair) in the final turn and Pemberton moved into fifth. Down the stretch, Walker hit the gas to move to even ground with the leaders and Tokyo Seelster joined in. The group of feature trotters crossed the wire in unison with four across at the wire. Off of his :27.1 last quarter, Pemberton got up in time and collected the victory in 1:52.2 by only a head. Perfetto finished second and Patriarch Hanover rounded out the top three.
Paul Walker trains the six-year-old Wheeling N Dealin gelding for co-owners and breeders Brenda and Christine Walker. Pemberton's fourth win in nine starts this year moved his seasonal earnings to $60,620. It was his 13th win in 31 starts lifetime and he now has a career sum of $463,179. Pemberton paid $11 to win.
To view Monday's harness racing results, click the following link: Monday Results - Woodbine Mohawk Park.