Lip Reader A silences opposition with gritty win

HAMBURG, N.Y. — Lip Reader A (Sportswriter) silenced the field in Buffalo Raceway’s $14,500 Open Pave on Saturday afternoon (April 19) with a 1-1/4 length harness racing victory over Stranger Things in !;54.4 over the good track.

After watching Vel Mr Nice Guy put up early splits of :28.4 and :57.4, Lip Reader A (Drew Monti) began his first over trip hitting the half mile marker. From there, he reached the top with a panel to pace and was able to stride away to the victory over Stranger Things (Kevin Cumminigs). A :57.1 back half by Lip Reader A proved to be the dagger that sent the rest of the field packing. Panettone Hanover (Jim Morrill Jr.) captured the show position.

Co-owned by Vogel & Wags Nags LLC and Team Rice Racing LLC, the 11-year-old Lip Reader A (Sportswriter-Strike Line) has two victories in five tries this season. THe score jumped his 2025 earnings to $18,630 and to $277,918 in his lifetime.

There were a pair of $12,500 paces to highlight the undercard.

Davey Day Trader (James McNeight Jr.) took the first division with a coast to coast decision by 1-3/4 lengths over Idealthecards (Mike Baumeister) in a season’s best 1:55.4.

Getting the early jump on the field, Davey Day Trader ($3.90) showed the way the entire mile, registering splits of :28.3, :58.0 and 1:27.3. It appeared Idealthecards might have an opportunity to catch the pace setter down the stretch but that attempt fizzled out. Mach Le More A (David McNeight III) took the show spot.

Owned by McNeight Jr. and trained by Jim McNeight, it was the second win of the season for the 5-year-old Davey Day Trader (Huntsville-Gigi Deo). The victory pushed his 2025 earnings to $13,500 and to $104,897 in his career.

Shipsaway (David McNeight III) bid ‘bon voyage’ to the field in the second bracket with gate to wire win in 1:56.1 over Porters Man.

Able to set sail early, Shipsaway stomped out fractions of :28.2, :57.1 and 1:26.4 but had to hang on late as Porters Man (Kevin Cummings) made a late rally but had that effort come up short by a neck. Out On Bail (Morrill Jr.) was third.

Owned by 716 Standardbreds and conditioned by Courtney Wright, Shipsaway (Dream Away-Silk Slip) is a 5-year-old gelding that has four wins in 11 tries on the campaign. The victory increased his seasonal winnings to $21,920 and to $128,518 in his career.

McNeight III, Morrill Jr., Monti and Joseph Chindano Jr. all had two driving wins on the card. Shawn McDonough collected a pair of training victories.

Racing will resume on Wednesday afternoon with a 12-race program set. There will be a $2,297 carryover in the Pick 5 which will begin in the second race.

For more information including the latest news, upcoming promotions, entries, results and race replays, go to www.buffaloraceway.com

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

by Brian J. Mazurek, for Buffalo Raceway