By Dave Little, Meadowlands Media Relations
EAST RUTHERFORD, NJ – After failing
in consecutive starts as the favorite, HL Revadon had probably lost a few fans
heading into Friday night’s $20,000 high-end conditioned trot, the feature race
at The Meadowlands.
But those chalk players who went to
the well just one more time got to pay for the drinks at the race's end.
The super-consistent HL Revadon, who
had hit the board in five straight starts heading into the non-winners of six
event, was handled differently by driver Mark MacDonald than he was a week ago,
when he went directly to the lead before ending up third.
This time around, MacDonald had his
horse away in no particular hurry, sitting third in the early stages before
using a quick burst of speed to claim the lead while parked at the half in a
tepid :57.3.
From there, it was no problem for the
4-year-old gelded son of Andover Hall-D Liteful Hanover, who trotted clear of
the pocket-sitting I Got The Looks by 2½ lengths at the head of the stretch
before reporting home a 2¼-length winner in 1:53.2. Winnerup rallied along the
inside to get second. I Got The Looks was third.
Trained by Harry Landy and owned by
Share A Horse Inc., HL Revadon returned $6.20 to win as the 2-1 public choice.
He’s now won seven of 32 lifetime starts and earned $182,349.
DUNN DEAL: Driver Dexter Dunn continues to
impress as the 30-year-old native of New Zealand, the only driver in the sport
this year with $10 million in earnings, and who won four Breeders Crown events
several weeks ago at Harrah’s Hoosier Park, tightened his stranglehold on a
second straight Driver of the Year trophy by winning three times on the Friday
night program.
A LITTLE MORE: Action on the Big M’s two 50-cent
Pick-4 wagers continued strong as a total of $137,715 was put in play on the
bets. … Favorites have been on a roll of late at the track, as after six public
choices clicked on Friday a total of 29 winning public choices have scored over
the last 64 races (45 percent). … All-source wagering totaled $2,334,662. … The
20-cent Pick-6 went unhit, creating a $5,088 carryover. There will be a
guaranteed pool of $15,000 for the next program. … Racing resumes Saturday
night at 7:15 p.m. as eight stakes races for purses totaling $2.495 million
will be up for grabs on Fall Final Four/TVG Finals Night.
