Co-features swept by Napolitano / Eckley

WILKES-BARRE, PA – It was the “George And Dean Show” on Sunday evening (June 23) at Pocono Downs at Mohegan Pennsylvania, with the track’s all-time leading harness racing driver George Napolitano Jr. visiting the winners circle five times, four times with horses trained by Dean Eckley, including in both $16,500 featured paces.

The faster of the high-priced featured claimers was Shoobie Doo A (Shoobee’s Place), taking revenge on A Fair Ol Dance’s ending of his three-race win streak last week by defeating that rival in 1:49.1, a clocking that equaled the 2024 local seasonal standard of Da Delightful and Big Skewy N and also gave the horse a lifetime best.

Shoobie Doo A had to go a :26 quarter to clear his archrival for the lead, then put up middle fractions of :54.1 and 1:21.2.

A Fair Ol Dance got a fair chance at his opponent in the lane but came up a half a length shy of the altered winner, claimed for $40,000 out of his last start by owner William Hartt but not again switching barns after this win.

SHOOBIE DOO A REPLAY

Changing hands for $33,000 after his victory, though, was the other Napolitano/Eckley feature winner, Winbak Willy T. The son of Art Major, owned by Kathleen Napolitano for this event, refused to let anyone get by him through monstrous fractions of :26, :53.2, and 1:21.3, then pulled away to win by 2½ lengths, lowering his record to 1:50.2 at age ten.

WINBAK WILLY T REPLAY

Napolitano, who has had sixteen wins in the last four cards he has been part of (five and four at Philly on Thursday and Friday, respectively, then two here yesterday before tonight’s five-bagger), moved closer in second to meet leader Matt Kakaley. Eckley, also already second in his standings, narrowed Jeff Cullipher’s lead with his quadruple.

In a $14,000 race for two-year-old trotting males, another hot pairing as of late, driver Jim Marohn Jr. and trainer / owner D. R. Ackerman, clicked again with the Bar Hopping – Ginger Tree Bren gelding Gimlet Hanover, who moved outside before the far turn and stepped his own last fraction in :28 to win his pari-mutuel debut in 1:58.

Pocono will be racing Monday and Tuesday cards, both starting at 1 p.m. Free Pocono programs are available at www.phha.org.

For complete race results, click here: US Trotting Results

From the PHHA / Pocono Downs