Favoured Scirocco Rob sat behind second choice Whats The Word for most of the $17,500 trotting feature on Sunday night (Sept. 22) at The Downs at Mohegan Sun Pocono, then moved out in the stretch and got by that tough rival by a half length in 1:52.1, just a tick off his lifetime mark.
Whats The Word buzzed right to the lead while the looped Scirocco Rob made his way to the pocket before the :26.3 quarter. The pacesetter went on to middle fractions of :55.3 and 1:23.4, with the winning Explosive Matter gelding coming outside for the stretch drive as the top two drew away from the rest. Scirocco Rob went by his game but outtrotted foe late, with George Napolitano Jr. getting his fourth win of the night. Mark Silva trains the winner for owners Kathleen and Lewis Whitaker Jr.
There were three $17,000 conditioned subfeatures, two on the trot and one on the pace. In the first trot, Daniel Dube made a cameo appearance at The Downs to drive his own Muscles Yankee sophomore gelding Brownie, and the journey was worthwhile for Dube. Brownie overcame a first-over trip and held off the horse on his back, Hill Of A Horse, by a half length in a lifetime best of 1:54.3. The Pierre Paradis-trained youngster now has a 9-4-2-1 record since adding trotting hopples on June 20.
The winner of the second trotting cofeature also reduced his lifetime best as the Lionhunter gelding The Lionking AS defeated first-over Boxing Gloves by two lengths in 1:54.2. The Lionking AS had been using his early foot to work out forwardly-placed trips, then had been close without winning, but this week owner-trainer-driver Kevin Wallis sent him right down the road, and the winner responded with a sharp last quarter of :28 en route to the victory.
The pacing event likewise resulted in a lifetime effort from the winner: the Rock N Roll Heaven gelding Rebel Rouser, who stopped the timer in 1:50.2 for driver Eric Goodell, trainer Bob Cleary, and co-owners W J Donovan and Donal Murphy. Rebel Rouser went straight to the top, yielded to the pace-controlling move of favorite Sports Legend in front of the stands, then went to the Pocono Pike and worked past the leader to win by a half length.
(PHHA/Pocono)