BY
FRANK DRUCKER, Publicity Director, Empire City @ Yonkers Raceway
YONKERS, NY,
Sunday, March 1, 2020—The name may have changed, but the song remains the same.
Yonkers Raceway’s
George Morton Levy Memorial Pacing Series has been rechristened the MGM Borgata
Pacing Series, but it continues to attract the best Free-For-Allers around.
Race secretary Bob
Miecuna has unveiled a list of 46 such candidates for the six-week sojourn,
which begins Saturday night, March 14th.
As usual, it’s a
five-week run of preliminary legs, with each prelim race worth $50,000. The top
eight point earners through the legs (according to the conditions of the event)
qualify for the $200,000 (added) final Saturday night, Apr. 18th.
One needn’t look
any further than last season’s $664,000 finale, where five foes from that octet
are back to try the series again. Defending champion Western Fame and
runner-up Rodo Rock, along with Ideal Jimmy (fourth), The Wall (fifth) and The
Downtown Bus (sixth) are among the in-to-go’s.
Western Fame’s
romp (1:50.4) in the Levy highlighted a $704,000-plus season for the
now-7-year-old son of Western Ideal.
He and his cronies
from 2019 are not alone.
Names such as…
--2018 Art Rooney Pace winner Trump
Nation),
--millionaire-in-waiting Sintra (4-for-4
at Mohawk to begin his season),
--This is the Plan, who took down the
half-million-dollar Ben Franklin (Pocono) a season ago,
--Wiggle It Jiggleit, the fan favorite
who’s on the comeback trail as he approaches the $4 million career earnings plateau
enliven the event.
…and lest we
forget about the Down Unders, of which there are 17, 13 from New Zealand and
four from Australia.
None Bettor A, who
took down last season’s Battle of Lake Erie (Northfield) and was a
season-debuting 1:50.4 winner across the river—edging Trump Nation and Rodeo
Rock—appears as potent as any of those friendly interlopers.
Now for the ladies
and the Blue Chip Matchmaker.
It’s the same
month-and-a-half scrum as the MGM Borgata, only with $40,000 per event and Friday
night affairs beginning March 13th. The $125,000 added final also
goes Saturday night, Apr. 18th.
Which brings us
seamlessly to Shartin N, leading lass of the 27 mares who paid in. Fresh off
her Horse of the Year coronation, the now 7-year-old double-millionairess has
her sights set upon a winning a third consecutive Matchmaker.
It’s not as if
Shartin N needs to take any track size with her, but she has won eight of her
10 Westchester work nights…all in Matchmaker competition (finals worth $402,600
in 2019 and $373,000 in ‘18).
The Matchmaker
figures to be the first 2020 renewal of Shartin N and Caviart Ally, the latter
never have previously raced in this event. ‘Ally’s lone local tries were a pair
of thirds in the 2017 Lismore (elim and final). She begins her 6-year-old
season with career earnings in excess of $1.8 million.
The list of
eligibles for both the MGM Borgata (No. 33) and Blue Chip Matchmaker (12th
edition) accompany this release, with the opening draws set for Monday
afternoon, March 9th.
