By Ray Cotolo, for Vernon Downs
VERNON,
NY— Sitting off a contested front, Yes Mickey snuck up the pylons to edge past
6-5 favorite Ariana G and upset at 34-1 in the $320,000 Dr. Harry Zweig
Memorial on Friday, August 18 at Vernon Downs.
Long
Tom grabbed the front from Yes Mickey before a :26.4 first quarter. Ariana G,
sitting third, edged outside and brushed to the lead off a :55.1 half. Devious
Man, behind International Moni stalled first over, loomed wide and trotted
towards Ariana G’s wheel, pressuring the leader through a 1:23.3 third-quarter
while Long Tom drifted off the rail, giving room to Yes Mickey.
Yes
Mickey gradually approached the leader up the inside, getting his nose in front
within the final sixteenth and edging away to win by a neck over Ariana G in a
lifetime-best effort of 1:51.4. Devious Man finished third and International
Moni finished fourth.
A
three-year-old gelding by Muscle Hill from the Pine Chip mare My Favorite Chip,
Yes Mickey won his second race in ten starts, earning $223,087 for owner Mellby
Gard Inc. Trained and driven by Ake Svanstedt, he paid $71.00 to win.
"He's a very
nice trotter, but it has been hard for him to win races -- he always finishes
second -- but today was the right race to win," Svanstedt said. "He
was very good the whole race and when I [got] free on the inside, he did it
easy."
Svanstedt
completed a sweep of the Zweig finals when Evelyn shook loose off a pocket trip
to win the $135,000 Filly Final in 1:54.1.
Sitting behind a
tempo of :27, :57, and 1:25.4 set by Feed Your Head and pressure from Sunshine
Delight parked first-over, Evelyn managed to weave through the dueling leaders
midway through the stretch to win by a length over Sunshine Delight, with Feed
Your Head faltering to third and Glitzey Gal recovering from an early break to
take fourth.
Racing for owners
Ake Svanstedt Inc., Little E LLC, Borje Nasstrom, and Silva Stable 45, Evelyn
won her fourth race in 20 starts, pushing her career earnings to $192,166.
Driven by Andy Miller, she paid $16.00 to win.
"I felt
really good except I was a little claustrophobic looking for a little
room," Andy Miller said. "She felt really good, I was just kind of
waiting, biding my time to get a little room there, and when she got room, she
took off."
New York-sired
freshmen colt pacers competed on the undercard of the Zweig Memorial, competing
in three $37,266 New York Sires Stakes (NYSS) divisions as well as two splits
of the Excelsior A and B Series.
Lagging off a hot
pace set by Courtly Choice, Hitman Hill struck around the far turn, brushing to
a two-length lead over Keystone Tenacious and Topville Olympian rallying late
in a 1:50.4 mile in the first NYSS division. Owned by Tom Hill and North Fork
Racing Stable, trained by Chris Oakes, and driven by Brett Miller, he paid
$12.80 to win.
Casual Cool took
the second NYSS split after taking the lead before the half, winning in 1:52.2
over Paprike Blue Chip and I Soar Him First. Owned by Kenneth Jacobs, trained
by Linda Toscano, and driven by Jason Bartlett, he paid $6.70 to win.
Mr Profeta snagged
the final NYSS division, sitting off a slow pace set by odds-on favorite
Jimtastic and rallying to a 1:54 score over American Vision and My Delight.
Owned by Anatolia Farm LLC, trained by Roland Mallar, and driven by Scott
Zeron, he paid $14.00.
Rockapelo, by Rock
N Roll Heaven from the Camluck mare Capelo Rose, won his division of the
Excelsior A Series going wire to wire in 1:53.1, while Prophet Blue Chip, a
gelding by Rock N Roll Heaven out of the Artsplace mare Weeping Wannabe, won
off a pocket ride in 1:55.3
Rockapelo, owned
by Enviro Stables LTD, trained by Linda Toscano, and driven by Jason Bartlett,
paid $5.80 to win. Prophet Blue Chip, competing for trainer David Dziengiel
with partners Robert Sholes and Edward Davis, was driven by Andy Miller and
paid $16.80 to win.
Brinks Job, by
Roll With Joe from the American Ideal mare Exclamation, and Buckeys Brat, by
Quick Pulse Mindale out of the Real Artist mare Artists Jewels, won their
Excelsior B divisions going wire to wire, doing so in 1:54 and 1:54.1
respectively. Brinks Job, paying $3.60, races for owner Rick Berks, is trained
Michael Deters, and was driven by Brett Miller. Buckeys Brat, returning $6.20,
is owned by trainer Lawrence La Page and was driven by Jason Bartlett.
Live racing at
Vernon Downs resumes Saturday, August 19 with a 13-race program that kicks off
at 6:45pmET.
