By: Jerry Connors, Jr. 
CHESTER PA – Nutcracker Sweet, who has been in the harness racing headlines ever since he won his purse debut in 1:52 in June of his two-year-old year, won for the first time in 753 days – just over two years – as he took the pacing division of the $16,000 tri-features Wednesday afternoon at Harrah’s Philadelphia.
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The four-year-old son of Bettor’s Delight showed good speed in making the lead before the :26.4 quarter, then was used further to keep Major March outside most of the way to a :55.3 half.  Cecil Casanova moved to challenge raw before the 1:23 three-quarters, but in the stretch driver Andrew McCarthy was able to find room up the inside and got past the tough first-over by 3/4 of a length – in 1:52.

By: Jerry Connors, Jr. 
WILKES-BARRE PA – A rare Åke Svanstedt-trained pacer, the Rock N Roll Heaven mare Kimberlee, sat off of very hot fractions, then swept to victory late in the $17,500 distaff featured pace during the Tuesday twilight card at The Downs at Mohegan Sun Pocono.

Shes Pukka N used the rail to gain the early advantage, keeping the favorite Eclipse Me N parked well past the :26 quarter to almost the 3/8; at that point Medusa, who had also left and was parked with cover, went on and gained command before the hot :54.1 half.

By: Jerry Connors, Jr. 
WILKES-BARRE PA – George Napolitano Jr., not long removed from achieving his 10,000th career driving victory, posted another milestone at The Downs at Mohegan Sun Pocono on the Monday twilight card, guiding Follow Your Heart to a 1:53.3 initial pari-mutuel victory to notch his 5000th lifetime driving success over the red 5/8-mile oval in northeast Pennsylvania.

Just as he did with Motown N 16 days ago to get his overall win #10,000, Napolitano moved early for the lead with the favored Follow Your Heart, and the Rock N Roll Heaven freshman gelding kept control from there, coming home in :55.3 while lowering his mark over 4 seconds. The freshman is trained by Aaron Lambert, who is also co-owner with Ron Coyne Stables Inc., Blair Corbeil, and David Linker.

Napolitano is well on his way to his 13th championship in the driving win category at the Pocono oval. In North American terms, Napolitano became the 18th driver to reach five figures in sulky wins, and he ranks 11th among active drivers. George also is sitting in third place among all North American drivers in 2019.

By: Jerry Connors, Jr. 
WILKES-BARRE PA – The veteran Conway Hall gelding Dayson was able to overcome a first-over journey, defeating Joey Bats by a half length in 1:54.3 to take the $17,500 featured trot Sunday night at The Downs at Mohegan Sun Pocono.
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Matt Kakaley kept the career winner of $1,118,127 midpack as first Sylvesteramerica IT and then Hill Of A Horse took command from the breaking leader The Lionking As near the quarter, then midrace moved Dayson to the outside to begin his grind forward. The nine-time seasonal winner never faltered, going to the lead in the stretch and then withstanding second-over Joey Bats for trainer Ron Burke and the ownership of Burke Racing Stable LLC and Weaver Bruscemi LLC, J&T Silva- Purnel & Libby, and Larry Karr (the last-named had the pacer named for him win in 1:50.1 over sloppy going at Philly earlier in the day).

By: Jerry Connors, Jr. 
WILKES-BARRE PA – On Saturday night, the Downs at Mohegan Sun Pocono honored its 2019 Horse of the Year and Claimer of the Year, who happened to be one and the same horse – the Western Terror 10-year-old gelding Atta Boy Dan.
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So far this year at Pocono, Atta Boy Dan has posted a record of 22-13-2-3, with earnings of $151,575. He was all but invincible in the top claiming ranks through most of the summer, taking ten of eleven starts, and he was claimed out of fourteen straight races, an unofficial local record. Peter Pellegrino, training the horse for owner Stephen Larkin as the last of the long line claiming Atta Boy Dan, was among those in the Pocono winners circle for the ceremonies. Atta Boy Dan is the first horse in recent memory to be a double honor winner for a season.

By: Jerry Connors, Jr. 
CHESTER PA – Rockn Philly, a pacing daughter of A Rocknroll Dance, became the only three-year-old filly to complete a “sweep” of the Simpson and Liberty Bell fall stakes series at Harrah’s Philadelphia, as both gaits raced two $30,000 divisions of their Liberty Bell events Friday.
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Victor Kirby sent Rockn Philly right to the lead, and after reaching the quarter in :27, the pair got a breather to a :57.1 half. From there it was full speed ahead, with Rockn Philly coming home in :55.4 - :27.4 to ward off pocketsitter and favorite Alli Nui by a half-length  in the 1:53 mile for trainer Jim King Jr. and the ownership of Tim Tetrick LLC and Jo Ann Looney-King. Rockn Philly was supposed to meet another Simpson stakes winner in Trillions Hanover, but that filly was scratched sick.

By: Jerry Connors, Jr. 
CHESTER PA – Trotter Summit In Sight and pacer Love Me Some Lou completed a Simpson – Liberty Bell “stakes sweep” at Harrah’s Philadelphia on Thursday afternoon, as three-year-old males of both gaits each raced in three $30,000 divisions. Also completing a “sweep” was sidewheeling sire Sweet Lou, whose progeny captured all three of the pacing contests.
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Love Me Some Lou was moved to the front early by driver George Napolitano Jr. in his division of the pacing action, and the winner of $247,302 lifetime, most of all the afternoon’s stakes winners, went on to an easy 2¾ lengths victory in 1:51.3 over Brassy Hanover, who proved most photogenic in a three-way fight for second. The double stakes-winning colt, who went off as the public choice, is campaigned by the brother team of trainer Tom and owner John Cancelliere.

By: Jerry Connors, Jr. 
CHESTER PA – Trainer/driver Jeff Gregory swept  the $16,000 featured trots at Harrah’s Philadelphia on Wednesday afternoon with P L Ketchup and Turville Hanover – and almost everything else was taken by the track’s leading driver, Tim Tetrick, who won seven times during the program’s thirteen races.
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The Kadabra gelding P L Ketchup was coming off a sick scratch, and in his last 45 starts over the last two years had three wins and eleven seconds, but all systems were “go” as the trotter switched to Gregory’s barn and promptly took a new mark of 1:53.3. P L Ketchup went splits of :27.3, :56.2, and 1:24 that gave him a big advantage over his foes, and when the two favorites, Hatkivah and Steuben Hanover, tried to advance in the stretch, “Ketchup” held off their late charges, with Steuben Hanover ¾ of a length back in second and Hatkivah another half-length behind in third. The Jesmeral Stable’s acquisition immediately returned a good dividend on their investment.

By: Jerry Connors, Jr. 
WILKES-BARRE PA – A pair of $15,000 trots headlined the Tuesday twilight card at The Downs at Mohegan Sun Pocono, with both winners scoring in 1:55.2 just before heavy rains necessitated a downgrading of the track surface.
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First to Victory Lane was the Donato Hanover mare Mystical Wynn, who parlayed a pocket trip into a neck decision over heavy favorite Grandma Heidi, who had set the pace. Anthony Napolitano drove the Bob Baggitt Jr. trainee for the Kelly Walker Stable LLC.

By: Jerry Connors, Jr. 
WILKES-BARRE PA – Tight Lines blew away a talented field in the $21,500 featured trot Sunday evening at The Downs at Mohegan Sun Pocono, recording a 1:54.1 victory with a :56.3 back half despite 50o temperatures and a sloppy surface.
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Trainer/driver Jeff Gregory was behind the innermost of the leavers and put foes in behind him to a :27.3 quarter, then got a :30 breather in the second stanza. From there the sprint was on, and the altered son of Yankee Glide was in complete control in the latter stages, winning by 4½ lengths over pocketsitter Joey Bats. Tight Lines has now won a third of his eighteen seasonal starts and has amassed $522,076 lifetime for Jeff Gregory Inc., Jesmeral Stable, and William Richardson.