Plainville, MA — After making every pole a winning one, Ammo put forth his fastest mile in the last two years and won the featured $30,000 Open Handicap Pace at Plainridge Park on Thursday (May 21).
Matty Athearn took a quick lead with Ammo and got to the half in :55.1 with Mydadsaid A (Jacob Cutting) following in the garden spot before Two Fold Cold (David Ingraham) pulled first-over to try and push the pace. Two Fold Cold drew alongside Ammo at the 1:22.2 three-quarters but was unable to forge to the front. Ammo strode out to a 1-length advantage by the time they reached the stretch but was not home yet as Mydadsaid A evacuated the pocket and had a target on Ammo and Mydadsaid A blitzed to the wire while making up almost 1-1/2 lengths. But Ammo, who was under heavy urging down the lane by Athearn, toughed it out and hung on by a neck to win in 1:50.2, which was a seasonal mark for the winner and his fastest win time since Dec. 9, 2024.
It was the 20th lifetime win for the 6-year-old Ammo ($13.20), and it pushed his earnings to $754,019. Melissa Beckwith trains the Patrick Morris-owned son of Sweet Lou-Beach Gal.
In the $22,000 upper-level conditioned pace, Alex Having Fun (Mitchell Cushing) got away seventh and 12 lengths in arrears as Lifes A Puzzle (Bruce Ranger) and Confederatestar N (Matty Athearn) traded leads to the :55 half. Confederatestar N guided the field onto the backstretch, where he was greeted with a challenge from Tenzing Bromac N (Ron Cushing), who was also providing live cover for Alex Having Fun, now fourth and only 2-1/2 lengths from the front at three-quarters. Positions stayed static around the last turn, but in the stretch, Alex Having Fun tipped wide and drew clear to a 1-1/4-length win over a fast-closing Franco Tyson A (Larry Stalbaum) in 1:52.1.
It was the third win of the year for Alex Having Fun ($33), who is owned and trained by Kimberly Vafiades.
Alex Having Fun was one of three winners for Mitchell Cushing on the card, who led all other drivers for wins on this day.
There was also a $20,000 race for 4-year-old Massachusetts-bred pacers, which was won by Southpaw (Jimmy Whittemore), who sat third behind Jon I Love Dat (Cutting) through ferocious fractions of :25.4, :53.2 and 1:21.2 before turning for home. In the stretch, Whittemore tipped Southpaw three-wide for the drive and outpaced Digging For Gold (Athearn) to the line by a half length in 1:50.1, which was a new lifetime mark.
It was the second straight win for Southpaw ($13.80), who is owned and trained by his driver.
All the starters in this race competed in the Massachusetts Breeders Stakes last year as 3-year-olds, with Southpaw and Digging For gold finishing second and third respectively in the $150,000 final. This year’s $3.2-million Massachusetts Breeders Stakes start on Monday, Sept. 28, and runs for a total of four weeks through Thursday, Oct. 29.
Long shot winners continued to be the trend at Plainridge this week with more big-time payouts being made at the windows. On Thursday, it was Monsieur Panic (Stalbaum), winning in 1:52.1 and paying $78, and Sunsational (Ranger), winning in 1:52.3 and returning $60.60, both for a $2 wager.
Racing at Plainridge Park resumes on Friday (May 22) at 4 p.m.; there will be a $17,644 carryover in the Wicked Hi-5 in the sixth race.
Free full-card past performance programs and replays for every live card of racing at Plainridge Park can be accessed at plainridgeparkcasino.com.