from the Meadowlands Publicity Department
East Rutherford, NJ — Casimir Camotion ($5.80, $2.60, $2.40) caught even money favorite Landmark Hall ($3.00, $2.40) in the final strides for a three-quarter length victory in the fifth race, the $40,000 Open Pace on Saturday night at the Meadowlands. Mini Me ($3.40) was third by a length and a half.
“The race set up perfect,” said Patrick Lachance, the driver and trainer of Casimir Camotion. “There was no speed, so I went for the lead and was able to sit the two hole behind the favorite, and I just went by him in the stretch.”
The four-year-old Camluck gelding paced the mile in a lifetime best of 1:492.
Casimir Camotion, owned by M&M Harness Racing LLC of Suffern, New York, now has five wins, two seconds and four thirds in 14 starts this year and career earnings of $200,240.
Landmark Hall, stepping up to open company for the first time, had seven wins this year, including his last five in a row for the ownership of caretaker Jose Alejandre and trainer Mark Silva.
“It’s not a good night for speed, and that was pretty much the difference,” said Jim Morrill, Jr., the driver of Landmark Hall. “The horse on my back went :254 (for the last quarter). My horse went :26 flat and was just beat.”
In a pair of New Jersey Sires Stakes for three-year-old pacing colts and geldings, winning efforts were turned in by Maltese Artist and Timesareachanging.
Maltese Artist, driven by Pat Lachance and trained by Linda Toscano, scored a two and three-quarter length victory over Squaw’s Fella in 1:512 in the $32,200 first division, the sixth race, and Timesareachanging, driven by Yannick Gingras and trained by John Bavosi, nosed out Holborn Hanover in 1:514 in the $31,600 second division, the seventh race.
“The race worked out real nice for him,” Lachance said of Maltese Artist. “Right off the bat he had two tired horses in front of him. He just paced home quickly, and it worked out for him.”
“He is a nice horse,” Gingras said of Timesareachanging, who picked up his first win in four starts this year. “I used him a little bit too much last week (in the New Jersey Classic Final), worked him too hard. I decided to let him go easy tonight and if it works out, it works out — and it did. There are a lot of good races coming up for this horse.”
“He was much better than last week,” Bavosi agreed. “He just got tortured last week. We wanted to race him off the pace tonight. He was eighth tonight and went three-wide around the final turn. He got lazy on (Yannick) in the lane. He gave him a few shots and then he took off. He’ll miss next week, then he has the second leg and final of the New Jersey Sires Stakes. He’s being pointed toward the (Meadowlands) Pace.”