Docs Bonanza, 2012 Horse of the Meet at Colonial Downs, got back to the winner’s for the first time in two starts at the current fall season in Wednesday’s $6,000 Winners Over featured pace.
Driver Chris Page, who wasn’t at Colonial for Docs Bonanza’s first start a week ago, was in the bike Wednesday and the connection from last year’s success kicked in immediately. The six-year-old The Panderosa horse sat fourth through the first three fractions, went to the extreme coming out of the turn and wore down front-steppers A Fool For Mark, Jolt Of Fire and Docs Zippy in the stretch.
Docs Zippy set the early pace, triggering fractions of :26.2, :54.1 and 1:22.3. Docs Bonanza ended up winning in 1:51, a seasonal best, by one and three-quarter lengths over Fly To The Angels. Last fall, the Mary Dawson-trained horse had a winning mile of 1:49.4 in New Kent.
A trio of late closer pacing series took place on the card as well. Fortunes Jenna and Lemondrop Martini scored $3500 divisional wins in the Horace Martin Memorial’s second leg. Jeff Nisonger directed the former to a 1:53.4 one length triumph while Gerald Longo guided the latter to a new life mark in 1:53.3.
Whats Up Rock made up for an early break in the VHHA Pacing Series’ first leg to score a tight win over Plain Easy in a $4,000 second leg division Wednesday. Driver Robert Dinning directed trainer Dean Eckley’s three-year-old Rocknroll Hanover gelding to a neck victory in 1:54.2.
A sluggish I Reckon So shook off a tough start and stormed by six other pacers in the stretch to capture the second VHHA division. The three-year-old Yankee Skyscraper gelding crossed in a lifetime best 1:53.3 after going off stride before the start and languishing in last through much of the first three-quarters.
The U Gotta Win One Now Series also got underway with a single $3,500 division and Henry Lewis’s Vertigo Hanover got his second win of the young meet in a 1:36.3 North American record in the seventh-eighth-mile pace. Driver Chuck Perry took advantage of a perfect pocket trip to beat runner-up All Is Lost by nearly three lengths.
(With files from Colonial Downs)