Chester, PA – A Rocknroll Star has certainly become a pacing star in the Mid-Atlantic area, as the altered son of A Rocknroll Dance (still the local track recordholder for sophomores) took a lifetime mark of 1:50.2 while winning his seventh straight race in the $20,000 Open handicap on Friday (May 5) afternoon at Harrah’s Philadelphia.

The recent form of A Rocknroll Dance did not frighten horses away from leaving inside him (he was assigned the outside in the field of six) – first Komodo Beach got the top, then Carbine took over nearing the midpoint on the first turn, with the streaking winner gradually working his way up to the lead for driver Marcus Miller in :26.1. Mid-splits of :54.4 and 1:23 would usually not be called “breathers,” but they are mild fractions for this caliber of horses, and A Rocknroll Star drew clear in upper stretch, measuring off Carbine by a length, with Komodo Beach another neck back in third.

The Robert Cleary-trainee, owned by Joseph and Vincent Barbera, had won three straight races before adding Lasix on April 8, and this was his fourth straight win since starting the medication. A Rocknroll Star has already earned $83,270 this year while climbing the class ladder.

In the $20,000 Open handicap pace for distaffs, all the favorites got into a big battle for forward positioning through most of the mile, with the unusual Philly result of the two longest shots on the board, Rockin Philly (9-1) and Dresden (25-1), coming home off cover, with Rockin Philly holding off her opponent by a length in 1:51. Completing a sweep of the Open paces for sire A Rocknroll Dance, Rockin Philly was driven by Andrew McCarthy for trainer Noel Daley and Morrison Racing Stables while raising her lifetime earnings to $616,926.

Simon Allard was the last race of the day to top the drivers colony with three wins, including two for trainer Ron Burke.

Harrah’s Philadelphia will present a special LIVE card of harness racing on Saturday (May 6), beginning at 12:40 p.m.; there will also be racing on Sunday (May 7) at 12:40 p.m., headlined by a $20,000 Open trot. Program pages for all Philly cards are or will be available at https://www.phha.org/harrahspps.html.