Batavia, NY – Saturday night (Sept. 26) at Batavia Downs means two top class feature races and this week was no exception. And both of those events provided exciting finishes.
In the $13,500 Open Handicap trot, Valentine Express took a lot of air during the mile, but ended up with the victory in the stretch.
Valentine Express (Drew Monti) got away fourth as El Toro Loco (Kevin Cummings) set a good early pace of :27.4 and :57.4 to the half, where Valentine Express had tipped out first and was motoring quickly towards the front. El Toro Loco continued to lead heading onto the backstretch, but Valentine Express made his way to second at three-quarters as Crazy Ritz (Jim McNeight Jr.) was also in chase of the leader from the pocket.
The top three broke from the field and maintained their positions around the last turn but when they straightened for home, El Toro Loco was surrounded by Valentine Express on the outside and Crazy Ritz by the pylons. All three trotted together down the lane until Valentine Express finally pushed to the lead and won by a length in 1:56.4.
Valentine Express ($3.60) went over $60,000 for the year on the strength of his sixth 2026 win for owner Rock 01 Stable and trainer Jerry Nugent Jr.
Then in the $13,500 Open Handicap pace, Livonjaxandqueens went gate to wire and hung on late to grab the win.
Livonjaxandqueens (Denny Bucceri) took immediate command from his pylon position start and went unchallenged through pedestrian quarters of :30.1 and :59.2, with Lanjo Lee (Kyle Cummings) drafting in the garden spot. As the race was entering turn three, Lyons Surfing (Drew Monti) was the only one who took a shot from behind, but he stalled in the breeze as Livonjaxandqueens stepped on the gas and laid down a :27.3 third quarter.
As the field moved through the last turn, it looked like the only one who could catch the leader was Lanjo Lee, and he took a big shot in the lane. When Livonjaxandqueens straightened for home, Lanjo Lee darted into the passing lane and was flying. Lanjo Lee reeled in Livonjaxandqueens with every stride and closed to within a quarter length, but the line came just in time for Livonjaxandqueens, who held on to win in 1:55.
It was the seventh win of the year for Livonjaxandqueens ($6.52), who is owned by Howard Ouriel and Andrew Ouriel and trained by Jim Rothfuss.
Michael Whelan was the top driver on Saturday after winning three races on the program, while trainers Walter Whelan and Ron Beback Jr. both had two winners from their stable.
Live racing will resume at Batavia Downs on Wednesday (Sept. 30) at 5 p.m. and there will be a $8,310 carryover in the Jackpot Super Hi-5 pentafecta wager in the 11th race. There will also be a guaranteed pool of $3,000 in the Pick-5 wager (with a $696 carryover) in the first race. The guarantee is made through the United States Trotting Association’s Strategic Wagering Program.
Free full card past performance programs for every live card of racing at Batavia Downs can always be downloaded at the track’s website (bataviadownsgaming.com) under the “Live Racing” tab. And you can watch all the races live as they happen for free on the Batavia Downs YouTube page.