by harness publicists across North America

Friday’s (Oct. 29) edition of Racing Roundup features results stories from Yonkers Raceway, The Meadows, Vernon Downs, Batavia Downs and Saratoga Gaming and Raceway.

Flirtiscape, T J’s Mr Lavec win co-features at Yonkers

Yonkers, NY — Flirtiscape (George Brennan) won Friday’s co-featured $38,000 Filly and Mare Open Handicap Pace at Yonkers Raceway by a length in 1:54.2. Jasperthat A (Ryan Anderson), I’m Betting on You and Cuz She Can (Jason Bartlett) completed the cashers.

Tom Berg photo

Flirtiscape won Friday’s co-featured Filly and Mare Open Handicap Pace at Yonkers in 1:54.2.

For Flirtiscape, an 8-year-old daughter of Artiscape trained by Lou Pena for California co-owners John Darrah, Nick Rusigno and Lawrence Keethe, she returned $7.60 (second choice) for her fourth win in 26 seasonal starts. The exacta paid $18.80, with the triple returning $103.

Friday night’s blind-draw $38,000 Open Trot went to repeat winner T J’s Mr. Lavec (Bartlett) in 1:56.3. Sand Top Gun (Brent Holland) took second, with Pricevalleyrevitup, Wind Surfer and Master Pine (Gregory) grabbing the small change.

For T J’s Mr. Lavec, a 6-year-old Mr Lavec gelding trained by Scott Blackler for co-owners Beverly and Gary Paganelli, Leon Schickman and Allen Kaplan, he returned $5.40 for his fifth win in 17 ’10 tries.

— Frank Drucker

The Meadows
Red Star Hottie charged right to the lead and scored a facile front-end victory — her 10th win this season — in Friday’s $22,500 Filly & Mare Preferred Handicap Pace at The Meadows. Although Red Star Hottie hadn’t raced since Oct. 11, Dave Palone sent her forward from post 7. She encountered a contested 27.1 opening panel but got a 29 breather the next quarter. Unchallenged thereafter, she prevailed in 1:53.3, 1-1/4 lengths better than Cams Van Go. Don’t Blame Her was third. Ron Burke trains Red Star Hottie, a 5-year-old daughter of As Promised-Whitehorse Fever who now boasts a career win percentage of 43.1 (25 for 58), for Burke Racing Stable and Weaver Bruscemi LLC.

Vernon Downs
Extreme Yankee parlayed a pocket trip into a 1:57.4 victory in Friday night’s $13,200 featured seventh race at Vernon Downs. With Claude Huckabone, III doing the steering for owner and trainer Brett Smith in the week’s top Miracle Mile trotting test, Extreme Yankee ($21.60) drafted along in second behind the pace-setting Armbro Doyle until the stretch drive, and then used hustle and muscle in the final strides to prevail by a neck over the fast closing newcomer The Windsurfer A. It was the fifth season’s score and 13th all-time for the 5-year-old son of Yankee Glide-Lady Pine, who increased his lifetime winnings to $87,653.

Batavia Downs Casino
Friday night’s Batavia Downs Casino 12-race program featured the $9,000 Filly and Mares Open pace and the $8.800 Open Handicap trot. In the Filly and Mares Open, The Grey Filly took advantage of the scratch of speedy Allamerican Tout and went wire-to-wire to score in 1:57.1 for trainer/driver Ron Bebeck, Jr. Big City Hanover with Jamie Dunlap tried The Grey Filly first-over and wound up second while the pocket sitter, Jennifers Major and Tom Agosti, took home the show dough. Sandra Beback owns The Grey Filly, a 4-year-old Northern Luck mare. The win vaulted her season’s earnings to more than $45,000. Fifty Two Fifty notched his third Downs win when he came from off the pace to score in the weekly Open trot. Getting away fourth, Fifty Two Finn and regular driver John Cummings, Jr., followed second-over cover, tipped three deep when that cover stalled, and trotted up a storm down the lane to be a going away 3-1/2 length winner, in 1:58.3. Early leader Hello Carlo with Downs’ dash leading driver Jack Flanigen held on for second over Speedy Ryan with Ron Abbott. This was the 43rd career win for Fifty Two Finn, a 10-year-old altered son of Movie Mogul. He’s earned over $426,000 lifetime. Ronald Stebbins is the owner/trainer.

Saratoga Gaming and Raceway
Pembroke Prayer got the best of the favorites in the $16,500 open trot at Saratoga Gaming and Raceway on Friday night. Co-owned by Mark Ford and William Varney and trained by Ford, Pembroke Prayer (Like A Prayer) has had an extremely strong 6-year-old season which saw him win for the twelfth time. Kim Crawford was at the lines as the speedy trotter left early before tucking in third. With open stalwart Prime Interest (Frank Coppola Jr) on the front end, the trip would be a difficult one for Pembroke Prayer who took a shot first-over at the half-mile pole. The classy trotter, who went over the half million dollar mark in lifetime earnings this month, fought gamely before edging out Prime Interest for the 1:57 victory. The race’s favorite, Scorpion Moon (Dan Cappello Jr), closed late for third.