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Sunday, November 13, 2016

BIT OF A LEGEND N WINS SATURDAY 45G OPEN HANDICAP PACE

BY FRANK DRUCKER, Publicity Director, Empire City @ Yonkers Raceway

YONKERS, NY, Saturday, November 12, 2016—Bit of a Legend N (Jordan Stratton, $13.80) couldn’t possibly have had an eight-hole trip than he did Saturday night, winning Yonkers Raceway’s $45,000 Open Handicap Pace.

In play from behind the eight-ball, the Levy Series winner found a gaping three-hole for a brief respite, then marching toward the lead.

He made it around pole-sitting, 9-5 choice Rock N’ Roll World (George Brennan) before a pokey 28-second opening quarter-mile.

Then came a plodding, 29-second next station (57-second half), effectively ending the suspense. First Class Horse (Jason Bartlett), gapping his rivals earlier, moved first-up from fourth, but never threatened.

Bit of a Legend N found a 1:25 three-quarters, taking a length-and-a-half lead into the lane. He whipped Rock N’ Roll World by that same margin in 1:52.3, with First Class Horse, a way-after-the-fact The Real One (Pat Lachance) and Santa Fe Beachboy (Brent Holland) rounding out the payees.  

For fourth choice Bit of a Legend N, a 7-year-old Down Under son of Bettor’s Delight owned by Harry von Knoblauch and trained by Peter Tritton, it was his 13th win in 27 seasonal starts ($718,450). The exacta paid $42, the triple returned $197.50 and the superfecta paid $829.

Stratton’s four-win night moved him within nine of 3,000 career victories