By: Jerry Connors, Jr. 
WILKES-BARRE PA -- Gilbert Garcia-Herrera won his first training title at The Downs at Mohegan Sun Pocono in 2021, and was honored in ceremonies before Saturday's final card of the local season. Also honored was evergreen leading driver George Napolitano Jr., as has become local custom.

Napolitano won his 300th race of the Pocono season on the final day, giving him his 15th local dashwinning title, and tenth in a row. He finished the season with a .352 UDR, giving him his 13th crown in that category, including the last eight. He also was the winningest trainer five times here.

Garcia-Herrera harnessed 91 winners during the campaign in taking his initial Pocono title. He has trained 3610 winners in his career, and currently sits as the ninth-winningest trainer for all of North America in 2021.

By: Jerry Connors, Jr. 
CHESTER PA – The Bar Hopping sophomore gelding World Bank rallied from the pocket to catch Ceffyl Dwr by a neck in winning the $14,400 featured trot at a cool, windy, and soggy Harrah’s Philadelphia Friday in a lifetime best 1:56.1. 
 
Ceffyl Dwr headed right down the road from an inner draw and put up splits of :29, :58.1, and 1:27.3 over an oval that had just been downgraded to “good +2” before the race; Marcus Miller got World Bank into the two-hole, waited until the stretch, and then closed late to post the 15-1 upset for trainer Steve Le Blanc and owner Dr. William Solomon.
 
There were two divisions of a $12,600 co-feature; the event on the trot saw the Sebastian K S sophomore filly R Speed Of Light make an uncovered move at the speed of light against the wind to get the lead down the backstretch, then trot off to a 4¾ length victory in 1:56.2, a lowering of his mark. Trainer/driver Todd Schadel co-owns the Pennsylvania fair circuit graduate with his wife Christine and Rick and Regina Beinhauer.

By: Jerry Connors, Jr. 
CHESTER PA – The John Simpson Sr. Memorial stakes series concluded its 2021 run at Harrah’s Philadelphia on Thursday afternoon, with $217,620 on the line for two-year-old fillies in the Davidia Hanover (trotters) and Razzle Hanover (pacers), each divided into three sections.
 
One Davidia Hanover section went to the Trixton – UF Lindsay Lou Who miss Primadonna Deo, who came roaring out of the pocket to quickly pass pacesetting favorite Born On Third Base as they turned for home, crossing the wire a handy 3½ lengths ahead of Pauline Hanover. Andrew McCarthy finally got the filly off the goose egg after five seconds and four thirds in her previous ten starts with the 1:55 triumph for trainer Noel Daley, co-owner with Deo Volente Farms LLC and Geoff Dubrowsky.

By: Jerry Connors, Jr. 
CHESTER PA – In only his second lifetime start, the two-year-old Walner – Chezatter colt Coach K Hanover set a divisional track record of 1:54.4 in one of two divisions of the $130,000 Super Bowl, part of the John Simpson Sr. Memorial stakes series, on Wednesday afternoon at Harrah’s Philadelphia.
 
Trainer/driver Åke Svanstedt knew what he had in front of him based on a 1:56.1 - :56.4 victory at Pocono in his bow, and from the rail he showed no interest in yielding to anybody, with Castle House and Parola Hanover tuck behind him 2-3 to a :28.2 quarter. Positions did not change past the :57.3 half and 1:26.2 three-quarters, although Parola Hanover had come up uncovered late in the backstretch, with Delgado drafting behind him. But a :28.2 last quarter under no pressure left Delgado five lengths behind on the line, with Parola Hanover another half-length back in third.

By: Jerry Connors, Jr. 
WILKES-BARRE PA – Trainer Linda Schadel swept the $17,000 featured trots on a soggy Tuesday afternoon at The Downs at Mohegan Sun Pocono, tallying with the Muscle Massive gelding Focus Pocus in 1:57.2 and then with the Conway Hall mare Sweet Heart AS in 1:56.4. The times weren’t bad considering the temperature never got much above 50 degrees on a day of mostly pouring rain, with strong winds rising to occasionally battle.
 
Sweet Heart AS had a rough journey coming raw from last in a five-horse field, but driver Marcus Miller got him to grind by the pacesetting Bang Bang Boinga, who eventually made a break, and then outclosed the potential pocket rocket So Long Hanover by a neck. Linda and Tony Schadel share ownership of this four-year-old winner.

By: Jerry Connors, Jr. 
WILKES-BARRE PA – The Cantab Hall colt Believer, finally getting some racing luck, came on in the last quarter to take the $12,500 featured trot at The Downs at Mohegan Sun Pocono on Monday afternoon. 
 
Third in both the Stallion Series Final and Liberty Bell stake recently and last time showing tenacity after being parked the duration, this time Believer got to sit just off a fast pace as heavy favorite Bully Boy was used to clear to the lead past a :27.3 quarter and then rolled on in :56.1 and 1:25. Driver Tom Jackson moved the sophomore outside on the turn and went by the tiring leader, with Seven Iron, the horse who had made Bully Boy work hard early, 2¼ lengths behind the winner and two lengths ahead of the pacesetter. Randy Taft trains the consistent winner for owner Mali Norbye.

By: Jerry Connors, Jr. 
WILKES-BARRE PA – Despite the mercury not rising much above 50 degrees all Saturday afternoon at The Downs at Mohegan Sun Pocono, the Roll With Joe gelding Benji’s Best paced a 1:49.4 mile in the faster division of the $18,000 handicap pace for top-level claimers.
 
Changing up his usual tactics, Benji’s Best left for the early lead, yielded to sit a two-hole trip behind Somebeach Baron, then powered by in the stretch to win by two lengths for driver Jim Pantaleano and trainer Antonia Storer. Benji’s Best was haltered for $35,000 out of the race, but owner Ameer Major did well by the horse (whom he had owned for a month in 2019 as well) – since claiming him on July 31, Benji’s Best had put $33,345 into his account, getting a check in all but one start.

By: Jerry Connors, Jr. 
CHESTER PA – There was $201,200 worth of John Simpson Sr. stakes series action for sophomore colts on Friday afternoon at Harrah’s Philadelphia – the Albatross stake for pacers and the Ayres stake for trotters.
 
The five horses from these groups who won divisions of their Liberty Bell stakes earlier in the fall were all in to go on Friday, in separate divisions.
 
None of them had raced since their Liberty Bell triumphs on October 1 – an absence of 21 days.
 
All five of them went off at 3-1 or less – three of them were odds-on favorites.
 
All five of them lost. And every Simpson division was won by a horse who had raced since October 1.

By: Jerry Connors, Jr. 
CHESTER PA – Always B Laughin and Easy To Please waged a fierce war through the stretch drive of a division of the Hardie Hanover, the John Simpson Sr. stake for three-year-old pacing fillies, and when the limestone settled on Thursday afternoon at Harrah’s Philadelphia, the Always B Miki filly Always B Laughin had a neck up at the end of a 1:48.4 mile. That time tied the divisional track record set by Party Girl Hill last year, and was only a fifth of a second off the divisional world record, set by Kiss Me Onthebeach at Pocono in 2016.
 
Always B Laughin flew away from the gate; Easy To Please was looped early and settled in the two-hole before the :26.1 quarter, but then moved in front of the stands to the lead before a hot :54.1 half. Favored Melania came uncovered down the backstretch but flattened before the 1:21.2 three-quarters; Always B Laughin vacated the pocket under Todd McCarthy’s direction at headstretch, and though Easy To Please fought gamely, Always B Laughin had stronger steps late in taking a new mark.

By: Jerry Connors, Jr. 
WILKES-BARRE PA – Driver Tyler Buter continued in hot driving form at The Downs at Mohegan Sun Pocono on Tuesday afternoon, winning six races to run his October visits to Victory Lane at the Downs to 25 in just nine cards of racing.
 
One of Buter’s victories came in the $17,000 pacing division of the day’s featured class. The Captaintreacherous sophomore gelding Captain Romance was kept in last much of the way in a six-horse field as contentious pyrotechnics on the lead produced splits of :26.2, :54.2, and 1:21.3, and then Buter tipped his horse wide for the stretch drive and the pacer finished strongly to lower his mark to 1:50.3 while defeating Bipbopnallie, last week’s winner in this class, by a half-length. Robert Baggitt Jr. conditions the winner of four of his last five starts for J L Sadowsky LLC.