After posting five wins at Batavia Downs on Wednesday, driver Drew Monti won five more races on Thursday, Sept. 3, including Miss Rockadali's 50th career victory.
The win with Miss Rockadali completed the five-pack for Monti as the mare won the $6,944 finale. The 11-year-old rode the pocket behind Feeling Right (Leon Bailey) through :27.4, :58 and 1:27 panels, then overhauled that rival in the stretch and held off Ashlees Delight (Dave McNeight III) by a half-length for a 1:56.4 win. Feeling Right finished third.
Rachelle Mungillo trains Miss Rockadali ($5.60), a daughter of Dali-Southern Rock, for Team Italia Racing Stable and Lisette Mota. The mare raced in Canada from her 2017 debut until early 2023, when she moved to Western New York. She has earned $484,696 in 253 lifetime outings.
Monti also won two of three co-featured conditioned races on Thursday, all of which went for a purse of $11,111.
He took the lone pace with Pro Beach ($4.34), who went gate to wire in 1:55.2, scoring by 1-3/4 lengths for owner P T Stable and trainer Sheena Cohen. The second trot was won by the aforementioned Amigo Mio ($25.48), who rallied for a neck victory over Latavius (Leon Bailey) in 1:59.1. Amigo Mio is owned by Carl Monti and trained by Darrin Monti.
Monti's other winners were Miss M A K (1:57.2, $7.16) and Mighty Santana N (1:56.3, $3.54). He also had three seconds from his 11 starts, giving him a UDR of .606 for the evening. Monti now has 51 wins for the meet and holds a 21-win lead over the second-placed Shawn Gray.
The first of the two featured trots went to Bars Open ($6.66), whom Kyle Cummings drove to a 2-3/4-length victory in 1:58. Bars Open is owned by Leslie Shafer and trained by Tammy Cummings.
Sheena Cohen led all her conditioning peers on Thursday with a training double on the 12-race card.
Live racing will resume at Batavia Downs on Saturday at 4 p.m. There will be a $1,438 carryover in the Jackpot Hi-5 pentafecta wager in the 11th race.
Batavia has a full slate of promotions during Labor Day weekend with a special “Vets Night” fundraiser including an Italian buffet on Saturday, and the annual driver/trainer bike race and giveaway and chicken bar-b-que during the matinee card of racing on Labor Day Monday, Sept. 7. Post time for Saturday is 4 p.m., and post time for the Labor Day matinee is 12:15 p.m.
(With files from Batavia Downs; photo of Miss Rockadali winning on Aug. 30, 2023)