Hamburg, NY – The front end was definitely the place to be at Buffalo Raceway on Saturday afternoon (April 26) as Panettone Hanover ($5.40) captured the $14,500 Open Pace going coast to coast while Vel Mr Nice Guy ($9.30) led every step of the way in taking the sub-featured $12,500 event.
It was a tough day for closers as eight victories came by going in gate to wire fashion while three other winners came from horses stalking from the pocket.
Panettone Hanover (Jim Morrill Jr.) made the feature a no contest as he blitzed the field by 6-1/2 lengths. Setting the way with fractions of :29, :56.4 and 1:25.3 over the good track, Panettone Hanover used a moderate :29 last quarter to seal the deal as the other five entrants could only watch.
Livononjaxandqueens (James McNeight Jr.) collected second-place honors with Davey Day Trader (David McNeight III) rolling in for third.
Co-owned by El Dorado Stables and Michael Torcello, the 5-year-old gelded Panettone Hanover (Captaintreacherous-Panera Hanover) is trained by Samuel Smith. The win, his second in eight starts this year, moved Panettone Hanover’s earnings to $17,490 in 2025 and to $195,250 lifetime.
In the sub-featured pace, Vel Mr Nice Guy, victorious nine times last season, finally broke into the win column in 2025 with a front-running 2-1/2 length decision over Thorn Toad in 1:57.1.
Vel Mr Nice Guy (Joseph Chindano Jr.), a winner of over $83,000 last year, hadn’t hit the board in three attempts thus far. But he turned it around nicely this time.
Getting the lead at the start from the six spot, Vel Mr Nice Guy stomped out fractions of :28.4, :58.3 and 1:27.4. Down the stretch he enjoyed a comfortable advantage as Thorn Toad (Kyle Swift) made a belated rally but came up 2-1/2 lengths short. Out On Bail (Morrill Jr.) was third.
Owned by Jeff Savidge Racing and trained by Maggie Chindano, Vel Mr Nice Guy (Straight Shooting-She Can Dance) is a 7-year-old gelding that has put $7,410 in the bank on the campaign and $297,745 lifetime.
Drew Monti showed the way on the card by posting four driving wins while Kevin Cummings, Morrill Jr. and James McNeight Jr. had doubles. Smith and Shawn McDonough each had a pair of training victories.
Racing returns on Wednesday afternoon (April 30) at 2:30 p.m. with an 11-race card set.
For more information including the latest news, upcoming promotions, entries, results and race replays, go to www.buffaloraceway.com.