Game of Claims trotters handle sloppy track

WILKES-BARRE, PA – Pocono Downs at Mohegan Pennsylvania hosted six $17,500 harness racing divisions of the first preliminary in the Game Of Claims Trotting Series Tuesday (April 2) for $25,000 base-tag horses, and the star of the day over the “sloppy +2” track was the Kadabra gelding Fight Song, who fronted his field throughout en route to a victory in 1:55.3 – with the next-fastest time recorded being 1:57.2.

Anthony Napolitano kept the quick trotter’s mind to business throughout to win by daylight for trainer Susan Marshall, co-owner with John Marshall. “ANap” also had the seat behind GOC winner Vegas Ticket, who won for the second straight race while covering the off going in 1:58.1.

FIGHT SONG REPLAY

Two-time defending driver champion Matt Kakaley also won twice in the Game Of Claims, scoring four times in all in the muck to stay in the lead while seeking his third straight title. Speaking of “third straight,” Passionate Promise (Creatine) has now stood in the winner’s circle after his race in his last trio of starts, this time after a 1:57.2 success; that clocking was also recorded by Kakaley’s other series winner, Evil Guy, who has three wins and a second after four seasonal races.

PASSIONATE PROMISE REPLAY

Braxten Boyd won a GOC contest in 1:57.4 handling a winner of two straight, Hockey Hanover (Explosive Matter) – the only horse to win two Pennsylvania Championships in the same year, as he took the Fair Championship and the Stallion Series Championship seven year ago when he was two.

HOCKEY HANOVER REPLAY

And Kinnder Thinktwice (Wheeling N Dealin) got the trotting brigade off to an upset start when he circled his opponents to win in 1:58 for driver Simon Allard, paying $75.00 for a deuce to win. None of the six success stories was claimed from the victories, although eight of their foes changed hands to the tune of $206,250.

KINNDER THINKTWICE REPLAY

The Bobby Weiss Series for promising three-year-olds will be in the spotlight when racing resumes at Pocono Saturday at 1 p.m. Pacers of both sexes will go in their first series prelims, with six sections of males and three of females racing for $20,000 purses. Free Pocono programs are or will be available from www.phha.org.

For complete race results, click here: US Trotting results.

From the PHHA / Pocono Downs