Wilkes-Barre, PA — The second preliminary round of the Game Of Claims series for the highest-priced selling horses at Pocono Downs at Mohegan Pennsylvania highlighted the Saturday afternoon (March 9) sloppy-track action at the northeast Pennsylvania oval.

Matt Kakaley took two $17,500 divisions with winners from last week and Anthony Napolitano guided the other four $27,500-base-priced success stories (the purchasing ante goes up slightly each prelim week in the Game Of Claims).

Dontpokethedragon became the first harness horse in North America to get to eight wins in 2024. Curtis Salonick photo.

“Success story” is just the right term to use in talking about the Custard The Dragon gelding Dontpokethedragon, as he became the first harness horse in North America to get to eight wins in 2024 while winning his tenth straight race, this time from off of cover, in 1:53 for Kakaley.

Also staying unbeaten in two GOC outings was Flashy Dude, who was moved outside on the far turn and paced to the fore in 1:53.4.

Both the double winners were haltered out of their races; in all on the day, there were ten horses purchased via the claiming box for $281,875. The game of claiming musical chairs figures to intensify next Saturday for the final prelim, as horsemen with itchy checkbooks will have an improved sense of who is likely to make this group’s rich championship.

Anthony Napolitano’s four winners in the series included two horses who were not moving to new surroundings after their races: the aptly-named The Best Tyme Ever, who set a new lifetime best of 1:52.2, and Chiefs Beach, who won in identical time to share series speed honors for the day.

Napolitano’s two other visits to Victory Lane were with horses who moved into new accommodations: Will The Wizard A (1:52.3) and Always A Look (1:53.1).

In overnight racing, two $17,000 divisions of a trotting class for developing horses were taken by pupils of Michael Burke, North America’s winningest trainer, while campaigning for Burke Racing Stable and Weaver Bruscemi: the Resolve mare Enola in 1:58, a new speed badge, for driver Simon Allard, and the Justice Hall gelding Stormont Divide in 1:55.3 for driver Kakaley, who matched Napolitano with four triumphs overall on the day.

There were also a pair of $16,500 fast-class events. On the trot, the veteran Explosive Matter gelding Rich And Miserable recorded the fastest diamond-gaited mile of the meet with a 1:54 victory for driver Tyler Buter, trainer Todd Buter, and owners Buter Farm Inc. and Lynette Buter.

Fronting the pacers was the Captaintreacherous gelding Jilliby Dynamite A, guided home first in 1:52.2 by Bradley Chisholm for trainer Nifty Norman and the partnership of Tom Vassiliou, Cool Cat Racing Inc., Nicholas Tallarico, and Archie McNeil.

For the second straight Monday, there will be no overnight races at Pocono, as during the 1 p.m. 14-race card there will be seven $10,000 divisions of a GOC pace for horses base-tagged at $17,500, and a like number of $7,500 contests for pacers carrying a base-price of $9,000.

Tuesday’s card has been expanded to 15 races to give the overnight horses a chance to race during the popular Game Of Claims action.

Pocono programs are available free at www.phha.org.