Upset in Harrah’s Philly feature trot

CHESTER, PA – The Trixton gelding Toccoa Falls, held at 21-1 despite a victory in his latest start, found room up the inside and thwarted a giant late burst by heavy harness racing favorite Stable Genius to win the $14,000 fast-class handicap on “Trottin’ Thursday” at Harrah’s Philadelphia.

Yanks Dugout took the field to the quarter in :27.4, got a breather while hitting the half in :57.4, then sped the tempo up to 1:26 by the three-quarters while no substantial outer flow developed.

The pacesetter could not hold on to his advantage, and the two “live” horses in the stretch were driven by the McCarthy brothers – Andrew, who shot up the inside from third-in with Toccoa Falls, and Todd, who had to swing Stable Genius wide from way back.

Toccoa Falls took advantage of the short route to post a neck decision over the onrushing chalk while raising his lifetime bankroll to $367,421 for the meet’s leading trainer, Per Engblom, and owner Ben Mondello.

TOCCOA FALLS REPLAY

Upsets were largely the order of the day at Philly until the last couple of races, and eight-time Harrah’s dash winning driving champion George Napolitano Jr. contributed more than his share in a five-winner day. Though “George Nap” usually attracts a good deal of betting attention, in his Thursday quintet he had only one winning favorite, and three of his winners paid $24.40 or more.

Pacers take over the spotlight for the last two days of the Harrah’s Philly racing week, with a $13,000 handicap for distaffs topping the card Friday; there will also be two events for two-year-olds. On Sunday, the $15,000 fast-class feature sports a field of six with a 1:48.3 average lifetime mark in a well-matched grouping. Free Philly programs are available at www.phha.org.

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

From the PHHA / Harrah’s Philadelphia