By Dave Little, Meadowlands Media Relations
EAST RUTHERFORD, NJ – Ana Afreet N
and JL Cruze made quick work of their foes Saturday night at The Meadowlands,
as each won their respective co-featured $25,000 Winners Over/Junior Opens with
ease on a chilly night at the mile oval.
Ana Afreet N, making just his second
start back after a two-month layoff, showed that he is all the way back in the
groove, as the Jeff Cullipher trainee crushed nine overmatched foes in the
marquee event for pacers.
Departing from post nine provided
little in the way of trouble for the 6-year-old son of Bettor’s Delight-Anna
Livia, as driver Andy McCarthy left the gate sharply, moving swiftly around the
first turn while four-wide before clearing to the top at the quarter in :27.1.
It was over right then and there.
After being permitted to rate a
second fraction in :28.2 with nobody close on the rim, Ana Afreet N then
shrugged off token first-over pressure around the far turn from the horse who
won this race last week, Shnitzledosomethin, before sprinting home in :26.4 to
win by 1¾ lengths over a rail-sitting Gods Spirit N in 1:50.2.
Shnitzledosomethin held third.
“He was terrific tonight,” said
McCarthy. “He really doesn’t love the front end but he’s going to have to get
used to it racing over a half-mile track [in the March 15 Borgata Series] at
Yonkers. He’s probably better with a target, but he paced home strong. I think
if a horse had been nearby, he would have shown even more.”
Ana Afreet N paid $5.80 to win as the
9-5 favorite and upped his lifetime numbers to 23 victories from just 46
starts. Owned by Pollack Racing and Jeff Cullipher, his lifetime earnings now
stand at $180,072.
JL Cruze showed no rust after a
two-week break, blasting down the pike in the featured trot in 1:53.2 as the
1-2 public choice.
“He takes me around the track,” said
winning driver Dexter Dunn. “He makes my job easy.”
The 10-year-old son of Crazed-Topcat
Hall backed up his pilot’s words by having an easy time of it on the front end.
“That’s what makes him so good,” said
Dunn, referring to his horse’s last start, which he won from off the pace.
“He’s so versatile, so good out of the gate.”
JL Cruze, who was assigned post seven
in the seven-horse field, exploded away from the gate, made the top out of the
first turn, and cut out fractions of :27.1, :56.3 and 1:25.3, before sprinting
home in :27.4 to win by 1½ lengths over a fast-closing Pikachu Hanover.
Winnerup was third.
Trained by Eric Ell and owned by W.
Kenneth Wood, W.J. Dittmar Jr. and S.J. Iaquinta, JL Cruze lifted his lifetime
statistics to 44 wins from 128 starts, good for an overflowing bank account of
$1,584,892. He returned $3.00 to win and has now won four of his last five Big
M starts.
A LITTLE MORE: McCarthy won three races on the card
to finish with five victories over the weekend. … The 20-cent Pick-6 carryover
of $6,225 blossomed into a total pool of $35,136, and those who had winning tickets
cashed in for $3,422. … All-source wagering totaled $3,114,494. There have been
10 Saturday programs conducted at The Big M thus far in 2021, and each has seen
the $3-million-handle barrier busted. … Racing resumes Friday at 6 p.m.
