By Dave Little, Meadowlands Media
Relations
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. – Dover Downs
shipper Highalator rose to the top of the horse colony at the Meadowlands by
putting together a pair of dominant wins, but his quest for a third straight
score was thwarted by another Dover invader in the Big M’s Saturday night
feature, the $30,000 Preferred for pacers.
Sweet Rock, a Wayne Givens trainee
who shipped in from Delaware off a pair of hard-fought wins, got a perfect
ground-saving trip and pulled off a 24-1 upset, and in the process, became the
fastest performer in the sport this year when he stopped the clock in 1:48.1.
The script played out differently
than expected as a group of leavers left 4-5 favorite Highalator four-wide into
the first turn. Driver Richard Still opted to take back and sit a three-hole to
the quarter as Sunfire Blue Chip hit the first split in :26.
Another Dover invader, Bags To
Riches, had designs on the lead, but Sunfire Blue Chip was not in a yielding
frame of mind and parked that foe to the half in :53. At three-quarters, Bags
To Riches started to back out of it as the pocket-sitting New Talent took
second. Highalator was now second-over and swung three wide around a struggling
Bags To Riches while Sweet Rock and driver Dexter Dunn sat in the three-hole.
After hitting three-quarters in
1:21.1, Sunfire Blue Chip was done for the night. Highalator was in full flight
on the outside while Sweet Rock was closing along the pylons after New Talent
had angled off the rail. In deep stretch, it would be Sweet Rock, the eighth
choice in the nine-horse field, grabbing the lead and holding off Highalator –
who went a huge mile – by a half-length. New Talent held third.
Sweet Rock, an 8-year-old gelded son
of Rocknroll Hanover-Penny For Nickel, returned $51.00 to his appreciative
backers while lowering his previous lifetime-best by one-and-one-fifth seconds.
For his career, he now has 31 wins from 169 starts and earnings of $719,106 for
owners Legacy Racing of Delaware, Reginald Hazzard II and Gary Calloway.
BETTING REACHES $3 MILLION: Players who don’t care for favorites
bet with both hands all night long, as no post-time choices hit the winner’s
circle after 3-5 chance Abigail Dawn took the first race. All-source wagering
exceeded the magic $3-million mark for the sixth time this year, as $3,025,740
was pushed through the windows during the 13-race card.
A LITTLE MORE: Dunn, Yannick Gingras and Dave Miller
all drove three winners on the program while Chris Ryder had a training double.
… Blood Line made his seasonal debut a winning one, gunning down 2-5 shot
Wheels On Fire in the second race high-range conditioned pace. Wheels On Fire
had won two weeks ago in 1:49.1, at the time the fastest Big M mile of the
year. … Racing resumes Friday at 7:15 p.m. as the fifth edition of the Can-Am
Pick-4 will take center stage.
