Sutton wins six at Northfield
May 15, 2014,by Ayers Ratliff, Northfield Park Publicity Department
Northfield, OH — Josh Sutton drove six winners on Thursday (May 15) at Northfield Park.
JJ Zamaiko photo
Sweetheart Dance was one of six winners on the card for driver Josh Sutton.
His biggest win of the night was when he captured the $12,000 Fillies and Mares Open aboard Sweetheart Dance. She is owned by Keith Pippi and trained by Kent Sherman.
Sweetheart Dance (Yankee Cruiser-Somekindasweetypie) started from post four. She led at every call, posting fractions of :27, :55.1, 1:23.3 and 1:53.2. She was an uncontested 3-1/2 lengths in front at the finish. The victory was her second straight success.
Completing the race were Riverdancer, Ashtoreth Hanover, Fritzie Chic, Wygant Belle, Blows Me Away, Tame The Dame, Deliciouslynaughty and Cams Van Go.
Thursday’s win was the third victory this year and 15th career score for Sweetheart Dance. It bolstered her lifetime earnings to $179,241. She was heavily favored and returned $3.00 to win.
Sutton’s other winners on the evening included Serina Request ($7.80) in race three, Ribbons Of Color ($3.00) in race four, Bride In A Box ($6.60) in race five, Sparkling Yankee ($7.00) in race seven and Hello Camie ($4.60) in race 15.
Sutton, 32, began driving in 2000 and has since garnered 2,439 career successes and is approaching $13.5 million in purse earnings. He has posted 198 victories so far this year over Northfield’s Flying Turns, which tops the local driving ranks by 43 wins. Ronnie Wrenn Jr. (155), Aaron Merriman (129), Kurt Sugg (61) and David Lake (60) complete the top five.
Sutton has spent his nights off driving at Miami Valley and Scioto Downs, where he has also been winning races at an impressive rate. To date, Sutton has garnered a total of 243 wins in 2014. His seasonal win tally ranks him as the third leading driver in North America, completing a Northfield Park trifecta of drivers. Aaron Merriman (264) and Ronnie Wrenn Jr. (245), both Northfield regulars, are the only drivers to post more wins so far this year than Josh Sutton.