Mister Muscle wrapped up a big day for his connections as the five-year-old trotter won the Sunday feature at Saratoga Casino Hotel.
Melissa Beckwith and owner Patricia Schneeberger recorded three winners on the matinee card as a trio of Beckwith trainees recorded Sunday scores.
Mister Muscle’s victory in the $15,000 Open Trot was his second straight with Mark Beckwith in the sulky. Dismissed at odds of 6-1 on Sunday, Mister Muscle raced parked out for the majority of the first lap before clearing in a half of :56. Though the Beckwith trainee began to tire some in the back half, Mister Muscle had enough to hang on in 1:56.3 to complete his back-to-back jacks in the Open. Longshot Uncle Leo (Jimmy Devaux) was first over on the eventual winner and finished a strong second while the longest shot on the board Silent Pine (Bruce Cooper) earned the show spot.
Mister Muscle, a son of Muscle Mass, paid $14.80 to win and led big prices in exotics. The Exacta returned $125 while the Trifecta came back $715.
Schneeberger and Beckwith teamed up earlier in the card for victories with Slieve League (Federal Flex) and The Great Farini (Comaro Dasolo), the latter who recorded a new lifetime mark of 1:57.1 with Jimmy Devaux in the sulky. All three of the Beckwith-trained winners’ victories on Sunday were their second consecutive.
Live racing resumes on Wednesday afternoon with a first post time set for 12 p.m.
(Saratoga Casino Hotel)