By Dave Little, Meadowlands Media Relations
EAST RUTHERFORD, NJ – All it took for
Franco Totem N to get back to the winner’s circle was a little class relief,
and on Saturday night at The Meadowlands, he showed his class in taking the
$21,000 featured pace for non-winners of $14,000 in their last five starts.
The gelded son of Changeover-Treaty
Franco last won when in at this level on Oct. 24. Three solid outings (two
fourths and a second) would follow at the non-winners of $20,000 level, which
prepped him perfectly for Saturday night.
In the early going, the Nifty Norman
trainee sat third before vacating the rail and going after leader B Stoney.
Franco Totem N led at the half in :55 while parked before settling on the
point. De Los Cielos Deo, the 8-5 favorite who was seeking his fourth win in
five tries, came calling first-over approaching and around the far turn, but
never got close enough to make Franco Totem N sweat, as the Dexter Dunn-driven
7-year-old hit the wire 1½ lengths to the good in 1:49.3 after coming home in
:26.4. De Los Cielos Deo held second with Mindtrip rallying for third.
Owned by Enzed Racing Stable and
Jerry Kovach, Franco Totem N returned $7.60 as the second choice in the
wagering. He now has 26 wins from 88 career starts and earnings of $226,130.
PROLIFIC PAYOFFS: One shrewd player betting into the
Elite Turf Club hub had him or herself quite a night, calling out the only
winning ticket in the track’s 20-cent Pick-5, and walked away with a giant
payout of $55,157.16.
The key to victory was 75-1 shot
Quagmire Bluechip, who scored in the fourth race. The winner’s odds for the
sequence were 9-2, 5-2, 4-1, 75-1 and 7-2, as none were sent to the gate as the
betting favorite.
The 20-cent Pick-6, which had a
carryover of $5,214, ended up with a total pool of $32,358. Despite a sequence
that saw favorites win legs five (4-5) and six (6-5), only two sharp
handicappers hit the wager for $14,143.12. The first four legs saw winner’s
odds of 9-2, 7-1, 5-2 and 6-1.
Another multi-leg wager that yielded
only one winner was the 20-cent Survivor Pick-7. Betting into the Oregon hub,
he or she held the only ticket with the first five winners of the sequence and
cashed in for $7,930.54. Once again, Quagmire Bluechip provided the boost to
the payoff.
A LITTLE MORE: Dexter Dunn led the driver’s colony
with three winners. … Dave Miller had a second consecutive driving double. …
All-source wagering totaled $2,667,691, the fourth straight Saturday where
wagering exceeded the $2.5-million mark. … Racing resumes Friday at 7:15 p.m.
