By The Book rallies for Open victory

The 2024 Horse of the Year at Saratoga Casino Hotel By The Book (Chapter Seven) won nine races in his award-winning harness racing campaign.

Although the ’25 season hasn’t been quite as productive for the Scott Mongeon trainee thus far, the six year old trotter is still competing at a high level against the track’s top trotters.

On Monday afternoon, By The Book drew the outside post for his try in the Open Trot but after a scratch, inherited post six. Driver Jay Randall was patient in the early going with the award-winning trotter who got away last in the $16,000 six-horse feature.

The favored Duke Lavictoire (Wally Hennessey) set first-half fractions of 27.2 and 57.3 before By The Book made his move approaching the three-quarter pole.

Climbing out of a hole of nearly ten lengths, By The Book took over the lead in the stretch before stopping the timer in 1:56.3 to record his second Open victory of the campaign.

Duke Lavictoire was the runner-up while Draco S (Mark Beckwith) finished third in his local debut.

BY THE BOOK REPLAY

 

By The Book, who is owned in partnership by Harrison, Barthelmas and Murray, paid $6.20 to win on Monday and led an exacta and triple that returned $15.20 and $107, respectively. Randall piloted a pair of winners on the Monday card.

Live racing continues on Tuesday with a matinee that begins at 12pm.

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

by Mike Sardella, for Saratoga Raceway