Verruso, Petrelli top Tuesday amateurs

Tony Verruso and Christopher Petrelli won decisive victories in their North American Amateur Drivers Association (NAADA) Trot dashes on Wednesday at Monticello Raceway.

Verruso improved to 10-for-31 on the season in the second programmed race, steering his Winneress to a wire-to-wire score.

He elicited early speed from Winneress on the pylons to beat a hard-leaving Judge Ken (Scott Kepler) to the front in a :29.3 first quarter mile. Winneress trotted the half in 1:00.3 and kicked away to a three-length cushion as the field of seven finished the third quarter in 1:30.3.

Winneress drifted off the pylons on the far turn, allowing Judge Ken an early seam up the inside. The mistake was ultimately inconsequential though, as Winneress finished well enough to secure his third victory of the season in 2:00.1.

The gap left by Winneress’ early vacation from the rail turned out to be not enough for Judge Ken on review; the judges ruled the latter cut inside three pylons and disqualified him from second to seventh. With Our Luck (Joe Lee) was placed second, and Cinnamon Stick (Robert Krivelin) moved up to third.

WINNERESS REPLAY

Verruso owns Winneress, a seven-year-old Credit Winner gelding. The horse has now won 19 of 124 lifetime starts, and he surpassed a quarter of a million dollars in earnings with the victory. Simon Spycer trains.

2021 is already Verruso’s best season – he has 10 wins to date, beating his previous best eight wins in 2010. The Whitestone, N.Y.-based amateur reinsman has won 92 times in 846 lifetime starts.

Christopher Petrelli doubled his win tally for the season in the second NAADA Trot division with a front-end victory behind Katkin And Coke.

Leaving from post three, Katkin And Coke emerged on top after beating Coco Hall (Lee) and Fashion Possessed (Tony Beltrami) off the start. Petrelli kept the accelerator down, leaving his foes more than three lengths behind at the quarter in :28.3. Coco Hall and Fashion Possessed, sitting second and third, respectively, closed down the leader by the half in :58.2.

That group of three were in a race of their own at three-quarters in 1:28.4 with the four other competitors more than eight lengths adrift. Petrelli began to work on Katkin And Coke while swinging through the final turn and got a sufficient response as the gelding neutralized any threat from his nearest rivals and completed the mile victorious in 2:00.2.

Fashion Possessed offered the most substantial challenge, finishing second by a length. Coco Hall faded mildly late but easily took third.

KATKIN AND COKE REPLAY

Katkin And Coke, a $5.50 winner, took his 41st tally in 148 lifetime tries. Owen Eiler trains the seven-year-old Colies gelding that has now earned $213,097 in his career. Bada Bing Stables of Monroe owns the horse.

Petrelli, a regular Monticello trainer, improved his win total in the sulky to two on the season in his 29th start on Wednesday. The Bloomingburg resident is now 19-for-208 lifetime as a driver.

Monticello Raceway wraps up its week of action on Thursday, Jul. 14 with eight races beginning at 12:10 p.m. EDT.

For full race results, click here.

by Nicholas Barnsdale, for Harnesslink