Lebanon, OH — Little Rocket Man went gate-to-wire to take the $36,000 Open Handicap at Miami Valley on Sunday night (March 29), one of five wins on the card for leading driver David Miller.
Leaving from post five, Miller and Little Rocket Man pushed away the wings of the starting gate, leaving hard and quickly clearing inside leaving Alta Revelry N, as he led the field single file past the opening quarter in a speedy :26.4. From there, the pack desired to follow along as Little Rocket Man used a :28.4 second quarter breather to coast past the half in :55.3. As they turned up the backside, the pace quickened as Miller stepped on the gas to the tune of a 27-second backside blitz, keeping everyone in line. Passing three-quarters in 1:22.3, Alta Revelry N popped the pocket and started after the leader. As the leaders turned for home, Alta Revelry N closed within a length, but that’s all the closer he would get as Little Rocket Man repelled the challenger to win in 1:49.2, unleashing a :26.4 final quarter to pair with a blistering :53.4 back half.
Trained by Ken Rucker, Little Rocket Man won for the fifth time this year, and for the 84th time in his career. His lifetime earnings are now in excess of $2 million.
Top five Miami Valley trainer Mike Hitchcock won three races on the card while Dee Smith and Virgil Morgan, Jr. each won two.
Racing returns on Monday night (March 30) with a post time of 4 p.m.