FAST FRESHMEN FEATURE TUESDAY AT POCONO

Photo: Curtis Salonick

By: Jerry Connors, Jr. 
WILKES-BARRE PA – Pocono Downs at Mohegan Pennsylvania came back from its brief refurbishment period Tuesday afternoon with four $16,000 contests for two-year-olds, one for each combination of sex and gait.
 
The most impressive winner was the Walner – Beautiful Sin trotting colt Mats, whom driver – trainer Åke Svanstedt moved from the pocket after fractions of:29.1 and :59.2 and just left the field in his wake, coming his own back half in :55.4 to record his second tally in just three career starts in 1:55.2 for S R F Stable. Mats, whose “combined pedigree speed projection” is 1:50.1, has a bright future in front of him.
 
His counterpart in the filly sector was the Captain Corey – Angel Eyes Hanover miss Andersson Hanover, who rated the pace as she pleased then stepped home in :29 to win in 1:58.1. Second in her recent Stallion Series Championship event, Andersson Hanover was driven by Patrick Ryder for trainer-father Chris and owner John McKeon Jr.
 
The pacing gelding Fabloulus Finney took the field to the quarter in :27.3, yielded to sit in the two-hole through middle fractions of :57 and 1:25.3, then went to the Pocono Pike and just edged 37-1 longshot River Ranch Mac, who closed a long way, by a nose while taking a new mark of 1:54.2. Matt Kakaley had the sulkyseat behind the son of Sweet Lou – Twinsburg for trainer Eddie Sager and The Right Move Racing LLC.
 
The Captain Crunch – Queso Relleno (a Yucatan cheese dish) Buenas Dias was the big cheese among the pacing fillies, laying off quick early numbers then closing off cover to win by a half length over Gigi N Miki to break her maiden in 1:54.4. Braxten Boyd guided the filly for trainer Eli Scott Jr. and owners Barry Mandell, Larry Brown, and Eli Scott Racing LLC.
 
Ridge Warren led the horsepeople’s colony for the day with three driving victories. Driver George Napolitano Jr. and trainer Joe Pavia Jr. came together for a double, and Simon Allard and Braxten Boyd drove the winners of the Late Double for their second successes of the day.
 
Racing at Pocono returns to its schedule of 1 p.m. post times on Saturday, Monday, and Tuesday, with this Saturday’s card topped by a $21,000 fast-class pacing feature and a double carryover into the last race Hi 5 wager. Free Pocono program pages are or will be available at www.phha.org.