Braxten Boyd continues winning ways

Batavia, NY — Harness racing driver Braxton Boyd made his now regular mid-week sojourn to Genesee County on Wednesday (Aug. 25) and this week put on quite a driving clinic at Batavia Downs. Boyd won five races on the card, finished second four more times in his 10 starts and walked away brandishing a .722 universal driver rating for the evening.

Boyd started out by winning both ends of the $114.50 daily double with Innocent Victim (1:57.4, $3.80) and Edom Up Blue Boy (2:01.1, $55.00), then won the sixth race with Rocklindarock (1:55.3, $5.50) and finally took both ends of the late $7.20 double with Atlantis (1:58, $5.20) and Cinderella Delight (1:57.3, $3.10).

Boyd has been on a roll in Upstate New York since he broadened his scope of operations beyond Tioga Downs. Over the past week alone, Boyd has won 17 races while driving between Tioga, Vernon Downs, Monticello Raceway (where he had a consecutive grand slam on Monday (Aug. 23) and Batavia.

In the midst of clearly the best year of his young career, the 21-year-old Boyd now has 145 wins, 159 seconds and 159 thirds from 999 starts and has bankrolled $870,218 for his connections.

The one race Boyd didn’t win on Wednesday was the featured $10,000 Fillies and Mares Open II pace which went to Misty Memory N (Real Desire) and driver Jim Morrill Jr.

Morrill vaulted to the front with Misty Memory N and held a commanding lead throughout the race. After cutting fractions of :28.3, :58 and 1:26.3, Morrill rounded the last turn unchallenged and at the top of the stretch, Misty Memory N simply paced away to a 4-1/2 length win in 1:54.4.

It was the seventh win of the year for Misty Memory N ($3.00) and owners Stephen Picarazzi, Scott Petillo and her trainer Brett Derue.

MISTY MEMORY N REPLAY

Morrill had two more wins on the night finishing with the hat trick on Wednesday.

Trainer Jennifer Giuliani had two wins and two seconds, all of which were piloted by Boyd, who also drove one of Jerry Nugent Jr.’s two winners during the proceedings.

Racing resumes at Batavia Downs on Saturday (Aug. 28) at 6 p.m.

For full race results, click here.

by Tim Bojarski, for Batavia Downs