from Harness Publicists across North America

Friday’s (May 28) edition of Racing Roundup features results stories from Yonkers Raceway, Harrah’s Chester, Saratoga Gaming and Raceway, Scioto Downs, Vernon Downs, Buffalo Raceway and Cal-Expo.

Hannah Isabel upsets in Yonkers co-feature

Yonkers, NY — Hannah Isabel (Cat Manzi) — an outsider in both post position and pari-mutuel proposition — upset the Friday night apple cart, winning Yonkers Raceway’s co-featured $37,000 Filly and Mare Open Handicap Pace.

Tom Berg photo

Hannah Isabel was a 1:54.2 winner on Friday at Yonkers.

Leaving to the right of her six rivals (in one notch after a defection), Hannah Isabel watched early as 3-10 favorite Mach You And Me (Jason Bartlett) took over from Little Mermaid N (Stephane Bouchard) after a :28.1 opening quarter-mile. The fave was able to rate a :57.1 intermission before Monochromatic (Jim Pantaleano) came calling after an awkward getaway.

Mach You And Me disposed of that one, taking a 1-1/2 length lead into the lane. All the while, Hannah Isabel was winding up wide from third-over. The 37-1 shot had the momentum, and eventually, the victory. Hannah Isabel beat Little Mermaid N by three-quarters of a length in 1:54.2. Mach You And Me, Soiree (Jordan Stratton) and Monochromatic completed the cashers.

Hannah Isabel, a 5-year-old daughter of Bettor’s Delight trained by Jean Drolet for co-owners Marilyn and Heiman Gross, returned $77.50 (sixth choice) for her third win in 17 seasonal starts. The exacta paid $284, with the triple returning $677.

Friday night’s co-featured $37,000 Open Handicap Trot saw Bad Boy Billie (Patrick Lachance) go to the house in a life-best 1:56.2. Leaving from post No. 2, the winner led through comfy intervals of :28, :58.1 and 1:27. After ridding himself of first-up longshot Pembroke Prayer (Bartlett), Bad Boy Billy had a 2-1/2 length lead turning for home.

He held sway to the tune of a half-length, with Y F Little Guy (Pantaleano), Shoeless White Sox (Jeff Gregory), Force Nine (Steve Smith) and Victor’s Vicky (Manzi) across the track for the balance of the coin.

Bad Boy Billie, a 4-year-old Boy Band gelding trained by John Duer for owner William Weaver, returned $9.50 (third choice) for his third victory in seven 2010 tries. The exacta paid $92, with the triple returning $635.

— Frank Drucker

Harrah’s Chester
Making his local 2010 debut, Christina Takter, John Fielding and Jim Fielding’s In Focus ($10.00) turned in a pillar-to-post, 1:53 victory in Friday afternoon’s $32,000 Open Trot at Harrah’s Chester Casino and Racetrack. The 5-year-old son of S J’s Photo made an easy lead on the first turn, clearing Lanson (Mike Lachance) with no issue at all, and the lead was made all the easier with last week’s winner Lubbock (Ron Pierce) breaking stride at the start. In Focus cruised through early fractions of :28 and :57.1 before pulling away a bit to three-quarters in 1:25 as Corleone Kosmos (John Campbell) offered mild first-over pressure. After turning away Corleone Kosmos at the head of the stretch, Lanson gave chase up the inside, but missed by a half-length to In Focus, who prevailed in 1:53, the fastest trot of the season at Chester. Daniel Dube handled the driving duties for trainer Jimmy Takter.

Saratoga Gaming and Raceway
The combination of Frank Coppola, Jr. and Jackie Rousse continues to climb the respective driver and trainer standings at Saratoga Gaming and Raceway as the pair again dominated Friday night action at the Spa. The star of the night was Open trotter Prime Interest as the 8-year-old once again dominated his rivals en route to a romp in the night’s $16,500 feature. Prime Interest’s time of 1:56.1 was the fastest of the year for any trotter at the Spa, eclipsing the 1:56.3 mark he set last week. Armbro Barrister (Jay Randall) was the runner-up in the Open while Slim Down (Jim Hardy) ran third. The Coppola-Rousse pairing teamed up for three more wins on the mostly trotting card as they secured victories with Good Luck Penny, Deliberate and Agusto.

Scioto Downs
Tomorrowpan took the featured Open Pace for fillies and mares at Scioto Downs on Friday night with a hard-earned 1:53.4 win over Kay’s Yankee Lou and Mexicali Rose. Chris Page drove for trainer Virgil Morgan, Jr. and the Peter Pan Stables. It was the first win of the season in two starts for the 4-year-old daughter of No Pan Intended. Dyno Trevor captured the featured Friday night trot with a 1:57.4 win. Driver Kyle Bolon moved Dyno Trevor past the half and dueled with Dream On Shorty for the lead, putting him away in the final quarter. Iliketherain rallied for second while Surclasser was third. Dyno Trevor is a 10-year-old gelded son of Conway Hall. It was his first win of the 2010 season and his 37th career victory. He is trained by R. Mac Davis for owner Brent Davis.

Vernon Downs
Bet The Ranch became the second four-time winning equine of the season at Vernon Downs after a 1:53.3 effort in Friday’s $9,100 featured sixth race. Competing as the favorite from the outside six post, Bet The Ranch followed closely behind second-choice Arbeedo for most of the mile, and then took charge in the final furlong to record a one length triumph in the weekend’s top test for female pacers. Howard Okusko, Jr. drove for his wife, trainer Jessica Okusko, as the 5-year-old daughter of Bettor’s Delight-Silksandiamonds joined fellow pacer Pickmeamerigold as the only Standardbred to score four times at the 15-night-old meet. Edwin Gold and Conrad Zurich own the career winner of $199,527. Driver Josh Marks won four of Friday’s 10 races to hike his meeting-leading total of first-place finishes to 44. Top trainer Tracy Brainard was credited with three tallies to increase her current victory total to 21.

Buffalo Raceway
In the $9,000 Open Handicap Trot on Friday at Buffalo Raceway, Manfromnantucket, a 5-year-old gelding by Giant Hit out of the American Winner mare Yankee Blondie, won for the first time this year in 2:01.2 for owner-trainer Allan McCarty. Capably driven by Ron Beback, Jr., Manfromnantucket ($4.80) used a :30.4 last quarter-mile to finish three-quarters of a length in front of Australian Stock (Ray Fisher, Jr.) at the finish line. Longshot Craiger (Jamie Dunlap) came in third. The $4,500 share of the purse boosted Manfromnantucket’s season’s bankroll to $8,340 and $94,119 lifetime.

Cal-Expo
Conditioned-claiming pacers, racing for a $4,800 purse, were featured at Cal-Expo on Friday night in which Ideally Magic (James Kennedy) zoomed by late. Under an all-out drive in deep stretch, the 8-year-old kicked in and surged by to the wire to win ($24.80) by one length. Owned by Dean Eckley in partnership with trainer Gretchen Smith, Ideally Magic stopped the timer at 1:54.4. The pocket sitting Star Time Kid finished in second and the pacesetting Deep Red finished another half-length farther back in third. The win for Smith completed a training triple.