(August 21, 2017) – The
victories have been far and few for Ray Cotolo this year in the Hambletonian
Society Grand Circuit Handicapping Challenge, but he made up for it big time
this past weekend as he earned a net profit of $116.80, over a $100 more than
his closest competitor. Megan Maccario
remains on top for the third week in a row in the overall chase, 20 points
ahead of the pack.
The contest week
kicked off on Friday evening (8/18) at Vernon Downs and while the first two
races of the evening were won by favorites, the Zweig Filly and Open races were
upsets and Anne Stepien was the only handicapper able to tab one of the
victors, Zweig Filly Stakes winner Evelyn ($16.00) which enabled her to be the
only handicapper to show a net profit for the evening of $18.10.
Saturday night there was only one race on the contest card, the Sobeys Gold Cup and Saucer at Red Shores–Charlottetown Driving Park and once again only one handicapper came out in the black, Adam Friedland. Friedland managed to select the winner Shadow Place ($22.00) netting $29.80 for the evening.
Sunday’s races at
Tioga Downs and Hippodrome 3R saw Cotolo come to the table firing on all
cylinders by managing to sweep all four tilts.
Repentence ($4.20) in the Tompkins and Pasithea Face S ($3.40) in the
Ms. Versatility were easy selections but reeling in Dealt A Winner ($72.40) in
the Roll With Joe and Western Fame ($14.80) in the Prix d’Ete required spot-on
handicapping. By sweeping the card,
Cotolo netted $122.80 for the day.
The overall race
remains tight with less than 30 points separating Maccario (704.23) from second
place Rusty Nash (684.20) and third place Matt Rose (675.38).
|
Standings as of
Sunday, August 20, 2017 - Leg #41
|
|||||
|
Pos
|
Handicapper
|
Total Points Earned
|
Legs Won
|
Last Week
|
Streak
|
|
1st
|
Megan Maccario
|
704.23
|
7
|
1st
|
3
|
|
2nd
|
Rusty Nash
|
684.20
|
6
|
3rd
|
|
|
3rd
|
Matt Rose
|
675.38
|
7
|
2nd
|
|
|
4th
|
Russ Adams
|
625.62
|
6
|
4th
|
|
|
5th
|
Anne Stepien
|
602.65
|
5
|
9th
|
|
|
6th
|
Dennis O’Hara
|
591.43
|
6
|
8th
|
|
|
7th
|
Sally Hinckley
|
570.23
|
6
|
5th
|
|
|
8th
|
Ray Garnett
|
567.11
|
3
|
7th
|
|
|
9th
|
Gordon Waterstone
|
558.00
|
5
|
8th
|
|
|
10th
|
Steve Horoky
|
525.66
|
3
|
10th
|
|
|
11th
|
Bryan Owen
|
494.23
|
5
|
11th
|
|
|
12th
|
Jay Hochstetler
|
414.00
|
3
|
12th
|
|
|
13th
|
Terry Wilson
|
407.72
|
4
|
13th
|
|
|
14th
|
Michael Carter
|
387.03
|
3
|
14th
|
|
|
15th
|
Adam Friedland
|
370.30
|
2
|
15th
|
|
|
16th
|
Ray Cotolo
|
350.33
|
2
|
16th
|
|
Next Up: This
weekend, Mohawk Racetrack will be
hosting the Nassagaweya (two year old pacers) and the Eternal Camnation (two
year old filly pacers) on Saturday night while Tioga Downs hosts on Sunday the
Crawford Farm Trot (open trotters) and Joie De Vie (filly and mare trotters) as
well as the Artiscape for (filly and mare pacers).
The 2017
Hambletonian Society Grand Circuit Handicapping Challenge is
sponsored by Adam Friedland, DRF Harness, Green Acquisition
Corporation, The Hambletonian Society, Hoosier Park Racing and Casino,
Meadowlands Racing and Entertainment, Northfield Park, Ontario Harness Horse
Association, Red Shores Charlottetown/Summerside, Tioga Downs, Vernon Downs,
Wellbourne Farms, and WEG Entertainment.
The contest is administered by HANA Harness, the harness racing division
of HANA, the Horseplayers Association of North America. Fans may follow the challenge by visiting the
contest site at http;//hanaharnesscontest.blogspot.com.
