Sea Can returned to Massachusetts after a winning respite in Maine and was as sharp as could be as he won the $33,784 Open Handicap trotting feature at Plainridge Park on Friday (Sept. 20) afternoon.
Sea Can (Nick Graffam) got away fourth as Big Box Hanover (Matty Athearn) marched the short but select field of diagonally-gaited competitors to the half in :56.1. Shortly after that station, Graffam had Sea Can out and rolling with Marquis Lafayette (Bruce Ranger) on his back for the live tow. Big Box Hanover was still in control at the 1:24.3 three-quarters but Sea Can took a short lead in the last turn as Marquis Lafayette continued in chase. As they headed to the line, Sea Can continued to pull away and finally cleared by a length over both Marquis Lafayette and Big Box Hanover and won in 1:53, taking a new lifetime mark.
The victory was the eighth win of the year for Sea Can ($7.00) and went over $400,000 in lifetime earnings, now boasting $411,560 in bank. Burke Racing and Weaver Bruscemi own the Joe Nelson-trained gelding.
There was a major upset in the $27,027 upper-level conditioned trot when the grossly overlooked Yucatan Party Man (Mitchell Cushing) left from post seven at 24-1 and set fractions of :27.2, :55.3 and 1:24.2 before holding off a strong challenge from the favoured Cruising Tom (Matty Athearn) in the stretch to win by a nose in season’s best 1:54.
Yucatan Party Man ($51.60) is owned by Joseph Ciuffetelli and Albert Ciuffetelli and trained by Tony Ciuffetelli.
Trainer Rob Harmon and driver Jay Randall led their respective categories on Friday after they pulled off a tandem hat trick. They won with Sweet Valley (1:55, $13.60), Conrad Dipoggio IT (2:27.1 for 1-1/4 mile, $6.20) and Mocha Java (1:54.2, $4.20).
Racing resumes at Plainridge Park on Monday (Sept. 23) at 2 p.m. and the card will feature the first three-year-old legs of the 2024 Massachusetts Breeders Stake.
(Standardbred Owners of Massachusetts)