By Dave Little, Meadowlands Media
Relations
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. – The two
eliminations for the Jim Doherty Memorial for 2-year-old fillies on the trot
were not safe for chalk players Friday night at the Meadowlands.
Over a sloppy track that was battered
by rain all night long, the first elim saw the top two betting choices go off
stride as Susy (9-5) faltered around the first turn and Speed Titan (5-2) on
the final turn. That left the door open for the tote board to light up.
Special Honor, driven by Andy Miller
and trained by Andy’s wife Julie, was actually not even in play in the early
stages of the race. In fact, at three-quarters she was in front of but one
horse (Susy), but the daughter of Father Patrick-Honor Thy Daughter started to
gather momentum heading into the stretch, swerved to the two path mid-lane and
then found a seam in deep stretch to gun down the fast-closing The Ice Dutchess
by a nose in a lifetime-best 1:55.1.
Special Honor returned $38.60 to win.
The exacta, comprised of an 18-1 shot over a 17-1 chance, returned $434.40.
Hanna Dreamgirl, Hanovers Best and
Jezzys Legacy were the third-, fourth- and fifth-place finishers, respectively,
and earned a berth in next week’s $357,450 Doherty Final.
The second elim was contested in a
deluge, and after 6-1 shot Starita yielded the early lead to 3-5 chalk
Beautiful Sin, this result did not appear to be in doubt. The field raced well
away from the rail as the rains continued to fall and Beautiful Sin turned for
home on a safe 1½-length lead.
Or so it appeared.
In deep stretch, Beautiful Sin got leg
weary and drifted away from the rail. That’s when David Miller asked Starita
for trot, and she gave him just enough to nip the favorite at the wire by a
nose racing along the inside.
Starita, a daughter of
Trixton-Morningstar, paid $14.00 to win after completing the mile in a
lifetime-best 1:55.2. The third- through fifth-place finishers earning a spot
in the final were Fate Smiled, Swizzle Sticks and Whispering Oaks.
A LITTLE MORE: One astute player in Ontario was the
only bettor to survive seven legs of the 20-Cent Survivor Pick-10 and walked
away with $15,469. … David Miller drove three winners on the program, while
Brett Miller, Corey Callahan and Andy McCarthy had two apiece. … All-source
wagering on the card totaled $1,621,378. … Racing resumes at the Big M Saturday
at 7:15 p.m. Atop the marquee sit a pair of Hambletonian Oaks eliminations,
featuring Manchego, Hey Blondie, Phaetosive and the fastest-ever 3-year-old
trotter regardless of sex, Plunge Blue Chip (1:49.4).
