BY FRANK
DRUCKER, Publicity Director, Empire City @ Yonkers Raceway
YONKERS, NY, Saturday, April 25,
2015—“The last quarter is her best quarter.”
Such was pre-race assessment and
post-race reminder from Jason Bartlett after Venus Delight ($5.80, part of
entry) prevailed from the pocket Saturday night, winning Yonkers Raceway
$261,000 final of the Blue Chip Matchmaker for Open Pacing Mares.
Starting from the inside post position
in harness racing’s second-richest race of the season to date (behind the final
of the G-M Levy), Venus Delight gave up the early baton to last season’s
runner-up, Yagonnakissmeornot (Brian Sears).
That one laid down early intervals of
27-second flats and :56.1 before her stablemate/entrymate Carolsideal (Dan
Dube), the other half of the 1-2 favored proposition, moved from fourth.
“Yagonna” and “Carol” moved in tandem
toward a 1:24.4 three-quarters, with “Venus” pocketed and Monkey on My Wheel
(Dave Miller) working from second-over. Yagonnakissmenot maintained a tenuous
lead in and out of the final turn, but Venus Delight was waiting for her
close-up.
She ducked in and went by a stubborn
leader, prevailing by three-quarters of a length in a season’s-best 1:52.4.
Carolsideal held third, with Fancy Desire (Yannick Gingras) and the winner’s
parimutuel partner, Krispy Apple (Tim Tetrick), grabbing the final two pay
envelopes.
Monkey on My Wheel, String (Eric
Carlson) and the retiring Camille (George Brennan) completing the order.
For second choice (with her stablemate)
Venus Delight, a 5-year-old daughter of Bettor’s Delight owned by Bamond Racing
LLC and trained by Jeffrey Bamond Jr., it was her third in in five seasonal starts.
The exacta paid exacta paid $8.10, with the triple returning $19.80.
“Last week (final
series preliminary leg), I wanted to see her on the front because she hadn’t
been there in so long,” Bartlett said. “She didn’t seem as comfortable. She’d
rather have a target to go after.”
A $75,000 series consolation was won by
a first-up For the Ladies N (Sears, $13.40) in 1:53.1.
