By: Jerry Connors, Jr. 
WILKES-BARRE PA – The American Ideal mare Sally Fletcher A, who had had several close finishes without victory over half-mile tracks recently, refound her winning ways upon coming to The Downs at Mohegan Sun Pocono, winning the $14,000 distaff pacing feature in 1:53 on the Tuesday twilight card.
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Driver Anthony Napolitano opted on finding late luck with the even-money favorite as he kept her third along the inside most of the way. Opportunity came knocking when the second-over horse gapped on the turn, with Sally Fletcher A answering the summons by swinging out and then wider turning for home. Despite bearing out even further in the lane, the Down Under mare had sufficient rally to catch the potential Pocono Pike pocket rocket Bye Bye Michelle by a length while raising her bankroll to $340,247 for trainer Jose Godinez and the Blindswitch Racing Stable.

By: Jerry Connors, Jr. 
WILKES-BARRE PA – The ten-year-old classmaster Melady’s Monet raised his career bankroll to $1,419,728 when he proved most photogenic in a four-way picture to take the $21,500 handicap trot feature Sunday at The Downs at Mohegan Sun Pocono. The final time of 1:53 was only a tick off the fastest trotting mile of 2019 on a 5/8-mile track in North America, posted by Jack Vernon this past Tuesday at Dover.
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Assigned the outside in a field of six, the victorious Revenue S gelding spotted fourth for driver Andrew McCarthy as Chestnut Schofield left no doubt as to his intentions, opening a four length lead by a 26.3 quarter and keeping the margin at the 55.1 half. Melady’s Monet started uncovered early in the backstretch and steadily gained, as did pocketsitter Two AM to the 1:23.2 ¾ pole, with Dog Gone Lucky joining the top trio and swinging wide in the stretch while Two AM went to the Pocono Pike.

By: Jerry Connors, Jr. 
WILKES-BARRE PA – For the second straight week, the Four Starzzz Shark gelding Epaulette A was victorious in the top-level conditioned pace at The Downs at Mohegan Sun Pocono, and just as he did last week he posted the fastest clocking of the young season, winning this $21,500 contest in 1:50.4 for a new mark.
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Perennial top local driver George Napolitano Jr. had the fast leaver on top by the 1/8 pole, but past the 27.1 quarter, Eddard Hanover made a quick move towards the lead. Epaulette A was having none of that, however, and went a 26.4 second quarter to keep the challenger out at the 54 half, and then shook that one off near the 1:21.4 3/4s.

By: Jerry Connors, Jr. 
CHESTER PA – The trotters and pacers returned to Harrah’s Philadelphia on Friday morning for their first set of qualifiers in 2019, one week ahead of the track’s opening day for the year.
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With the temperature in the mid-40s and horses forced to negotiate a “sloppy +2” surface, the Well Said sophomore gelding Just Plain Loco went the fastest mile with an open-length win in 1:56.3 for driver Pat Berry and trainer Tom Fanning.  Just Plain Loco took his two-year-old mark of 1:54 in a Pennsylvania Stallion Series contest; he also won the Renaissance Final and was second in the Sheppard.

By: Jerry Connors, Jr. 
WILKES-BARRE PA – Under patient handling from Anthony Napolitano, the Bettor’s Delight mare Betabcool N rallied off of a fast pace to win in 1:52.3 while taking the $14,000 featured pace for mares at The Downs at Mohegan Sun Pocono, with the mountain track starting its 2019 scheduling of 4 p.m. post time on Mondays and Tuesdays. 

Betabcool N was pinned in behind an early-moving flow as fractions of 27, 55.3, and 1:22.4 were posted, mostly by pacesetting Vorst. She retained the lead into the lane, but Always A Z Tam swung wide off cover midturn, with “ANap” and Betabcool N following that one wide. In deep stretch the New Zealand import proved to have the most late kick, winning by a neck over Always A Z Tam, who nosed out Vorst for second. Jose Godinez, who teamed with Anthony Nap for another come-from-behind victory with the trotter Crazycat earlier in the card, conditions the winner of $460,062 for the Blindswitch Racing Stable.

By: Jerry Connors, Jr. 
WILKES-BARRE PA – The weather may have been cold and windy for the opening night of the 2019 racing season at The Downs at Mohegan Sun Pocono, but one place where it was hot was near the claiming box, as no fewer the fifteen horses were haltered in the five claiming events at the mountain oval Saturday night – including Urban Renewal, the winner of the featured $20,000 claiming handicap pace on the opener.

With two speedy favorites drawing posts one and two, driver Eric Carlson raced out and accepted a 4-tuck with the altered son of Cam’s Card Shark, then came uncovered on a night when the speed was winless in the first nine races. That figure soon went to 0-for-10, as Urban Renewal grinded right to the lead on the turn, then drew off to win by 3¼ lengths in his farewell for trainer Mike Watson and Clifford Grundy, who saw the horse taken for a $35,000 claiming price.