BY
FRANK DRUCKER, Publicity Director, Empire City @ Yonkers Raceway
YONKERS, NY,
Saturday, July 21, 2018—Veteran Great Vintage (Mark MacDonald, $6.60) had to
work for the lead and that worked for him Saturday night (July 21st),
winning Yonkers Raceway’s $44,000 Open Handicap Pace.
Using his usual
gate speed, Great Vintage—from post position No. 5—had an early impediment in
Barimah A (Brent Holland). Forced wide around that one, Great Vintage then
continued to the lead, taking over from Robbie Burns N (Greg Merton) before a
27-second opening quarter-mile.
Once he fronted
the fray, Great Vintage finished it off (:56.4, 1:24.4, 1:52.4). Second went to a stubborn 17-10 fave Always at My
Place (George Brennan), who was also compromised when an out-again Barimah A
moved first-up and was his obligatory hard-to-steer self.
Barimah A eventually went back in—again—leaving Always at My
Place to take up the chase. Great Vintage, with a length-and-a-half lead
entering the lane, defeated Always at My Place by three-quarters of a length in
1:52.
Robbie Burns N was a pocket third, with Run Oneover N (Jim
Marohn Jr.) and that Barimah A rounding out the payees.
For second choice
Great Vintage, a 10-year-old son of American Ideal owned by Christina Takter,
John Fielding, Goran Anderberg & Goran Falk and trained by Jimmy Takter, it
was his fourth win in 11 seasonal starts (career 44-for-159, earnings over
$1.24 million). The exacta paid $22, the triple returned $68.50 and the
superfecta paid $281.
Sunday’s (July 22nd) matinee has a
first post of 12:30 PM, with races 1 through 4 of the overflow-field,
mile-and-a-quarter ‘French’ theme. The ‘New York, New York Double’ is comprised
of Saratoga’s third race and Yonkers’ fifth. Post times are 2:07 PM and 2:20
PM, respectively.
