Batavia, NY — It was a good day at the office for trainer Dakota Jackson, who saw two of his students win races at Batavia Downs and fortuitously, both occurred in the co-featured $13,500 Opens on Sunday (Aug. 9) afternoon.
Trente Deo won the Open Handicap pace after taking a lot of air in a first-over effort.
Trente Deo (Andy Shetler) got away fifth as It’s Electrifying N (Leon Bailey) bested Lanjo Lee (Kyle Cummings) for the lead and crossed over past the :27.2 quarter. But no sooner than It’s Electrifying N set up shop on the point, Shetler had Trente Deo out and rolling at three-eighths and methodically moved into second and matching strides with It’s Electrifying N as they passed three-quarters. Inch by inch, Trente Deo drew even with the leader in the far turn and then pulled ahead as they straightened for home. From there, Trente Deo had a clear lead and held off the late rush presented by Lanjo Lee to win by a neck in 1:54.3.
It was the second win in a row and fifth of the season for the venerable 10-year-old, Trente Deo ($38.14), who is owned by Kelly Jackson.
Next, Shine All The Way did exactly that in the Open Handicap trot, going gate to wire in unfettered fashion.
Shine All The Way (Dave McNeight III) left sharply from post two and struck a 1-¼ length lead as he cruised by the quarter in a tepid :29 flat. McNeight backed it off even further in the second panel, getting to the half in a meager :59.1, as he was receiving no opposition from behind. As they motored up the backstretch, Valentine Express (Shawn Gray) finally moved in the breeze and tried to apply some pressure to Shine All The Way, who was in total control and still a loose length clear. Positions remained unchanged through turn four and when they entered the stretch, McNeight raised the lines and Shine All The Way finished the job by bolting to the line ahead by two lengths, a winner in 1:57.1.
It was the sixth win of the year for Shine All The Way ($4.88), who is owned by Jason Seymour.
Dave McNeight III and Drew Monti both had three driving wins on Sunday while trainers Jennifer Petrelli and Rachelle Mungillo joined Dakota Jackson with two wins apiece.
Live racing will resume at Batavia Downs on Wednesday (Aug 12) at 5 p.m. with the New York Sire Stakes back in town featuring one division of 2-year-old pacing colts and geldings lining up for the hefty sum of $110,200.
Free full card past performance programs for every live card of racing at Batavia Downs can always be downloaded at the track’s website (bataviadownsgaming.com) under the “Live Racing” tab. And you can watch all the races live as they happen for free on the Batavia Downs YouTube page.