A shocking rerun, as Feelin Red Hot successfully authored another down-the-road tome Friday night, winning Yonkers Raceway’s $46,000 Filly and Mare Open Handicap Pace.
Assigned outside her seven foes, Feelin Red Hot and driver George Brennan pole-vaulted over all of ‘em, working round 3-5 favourite Alexas Power Jason Bartlett) before a :27-second opening quarter-mile.
After a :55.4 intermission, Dibaba N (Eric Goodell) tried it meekly first-up from fifth. Meanwhile, Feelin Red Hot rolled in and out of a 1:23.1 three-quarters.
Taking a length-and-a-half lead into the lane, she held off Alexas Power, winning by a length-and-a-quarter in a season’s-best 1:50.4.
D Gs Elsa (Joe Bongiorno) was a best-of-the-rest three-hole third, with Dibaba N and Safe from Terror (Jim Marohn, Jr.) settling for the remainder.
For second choice Feelin Red Hot, a six-year-old daughter of Feelin Friskie co-owned (as Burke Racing) by (trainer) Ron Burke and Weaver Bruscemi, it was her 12th win in 27 seasonal starts. She paid $8.20 to win.
Saturday night is one of the Raceway’s marquee programs of the season, featuring the 64th Yonkers Trot and 65th Messenger Stakes, both Triple Crown events and both worth $500,000. Companion events—the Hudson Filly Trot and Lady Maud—each go for more than $120,000.
Post time for the dozen-race card is the usual 6:50 p.m., with the featured going as races 4 through 7.
The Raceway opens for simulcasting Saturday at 11:30 a.m. in advance of Gulfstream Park’s early post time of 12:15 p.m. Note that Saratoga Race Course’s final weekend has a first post of 12:30 p.m. through Labor Day (Monday, Sept. 2nd).
(Yonkers)