Lap Time Photo – Skip Smith

MALTESE ARTIST (#3), driven by Dave Palone, holds of SPECIAL REPORT and WESTERN ACE (#4) to take the $30,000 first division of the second leg of the Isle of Capri Pacing Series at Pompano Park on Saturday in 1:50.1.

Starting from post three with Dave Palone at the lines, Maltese Artist settled briefly in second-place as Special Report (Wally Hennessey) showed the way through an opening quarter mile in :26.1

“We were really stepping off the wings,” Palone said following the race. “Wally had timed his horse perfect, and when Bruce left (with My Boy David), I thought about putting my horse in, but then chose to go right for the front,”

Utilizing a bold move as the field passed the grandstand for the first time, Maltese Artist powered his way to the top, clearing Special Report before cutting out middle fractions of :55.1 and 1:22.3.

Maltese Artist entered the stretch with a one-length advantage, but faced a late challenge on both flanks as Western Ace (Howard Parker) closed determinedly down the center of the track, and Special Report skimmed the pylons, finding a lane to charge through in the final yards.

“I really wasn’t worried about Howard’s horse going by, as I thought I had enough left to hold him off,” Palone said. “But I knew Wally would be loaded, and I just couldn’t let him through.”

The trio hit the wire together, with Maltese Artist holding on gamely to prevail by a nose.

Owned by Sylvia Burke, John Howard, and James Koran, and trained by Mickey Burke, Maltese Artist returned $3.00, $2.10, and $2.10 for the victory. Special Report brought in $3.00 and $2.10 for second, while Western Ace paid $2.20 for third. Sahara Hall, My Boy David, JK Big Shot, and Miracle Believer completed the order of finish.

Later in the evening, No Nonsense Yankee clocked the fastest mile of the night when stopping the timer in a career-best 1:50 to capture his $30,000 division of the second leg of the Isle of Capri Pacing Series for the ownership of Despina Powell and trainer Mike Deters.

Driven from post six by Wally Hennessey, No Nonsense Yankee settled briefly in fourth place through an opening quarter mile in :26.3, before angling to the outside and seizing control of the race with one aggressive move to the front.

“To be honest, when the gate opened, I didn’t know what I was going to do,” Hennessey stated following the victory. “I was able to drop in fourth early, and I was content to sit there, but my horse wanted to go and I couldn’t leave him in there.

“When I made that move I thought to myself ‘this could be a mistake’, but when he cleared to the front he just swelled right up.”

No Nonsense Yankee carved out middle fractions of :54.4 and 1:21.4 before entering the stretch with a two-length advantage. The son of Jenna’s Beach Boy was never presented with a challenge down the lane, extending his winning margin to 2-3/4 lengths at the wire.

“The horse has been so sharp lately, and he was strong right through the end,” Hennessey said. “He wasn’t done at the end tonight, by any means. He wasn’t close to being on empty.”

No Nonsense Yankee returned $7.60, $3.40, and $2.60 for the victory. Green River Gorge brought in $4.20 and $3.60 for second, while Predator Dvm paid $6.40 for third. Fake Denario N, Disco Dragon, Armbro Dynamic, and Mr Feelgood rounded out the field.