Wilkes-Barre, PA – Trainer Travis Alexander sent out three of the six qualifier wins at Pocono Downs at Mohegan Pennsylvania Wednesday morning (April 22). All were older pacers defeating some promising returning 3-year-olds – and each winner was handled by a different driver.
Pleaseletmeknow, a career winner of $943,542, stopped the timer in 1:52.2, coming out of the pocket for Jason Bartlett to down the sophomore Knoxville, third in the NYSS final, by a length while covering his back fractions in :55.4 – :27.3.
The Greek Freak, with $584.018 on his card, wired his field in 1:52.3 – :55.3 for Braxten Boyd. Among the defeated were two 3-year-old fillies: Tall Dark Tequila, third in the Matron, and the winner’s stablemate Odds On Monetary, third in the Big Apple Final after winning an elimination.
The third winner was a newcomer to the barn, the recent Dover Open Mare mainstay Ballast, who led throughout and scurried home in :55 – :27.2 in a 1:53.4 mile for driver Matt Kakaley. Fillies were 2-3 behind her: Say Goodnight, who paid $135.60 in winning her Pennsylvania Sire Stakes Championship, took the deuce, ahead of Long Shore, the Big Apple winner.
Going a fast mile after coming up from Florida was another sophomore pacing filly, Imagine Heaven, who might have been surprised with the temperature at 46 after her wintering, but still went 1:54.4 – :55.2 – :27.1 in making every pole a winning one for driver Bartlett and trainer Hunter Oakes.
The Pocono qualifying card can be watched at www.phha.org.