Hug The Wind N (Bettor’s Delight) made his local debut on Saturday night at Saratoga Casino Hotel while competing in the evening’s feature. The Rich Banca trainee started from post position four in the eight-horse Open Pace with driver Jay Randall in the sulky. The action came fast and furious in the $14,500 feature as rivals slugged it out early to the tune of first-half fractions of 26.1 and 54 seconds. All the while, closers like Hug The Wind N waited patiently and when Randall gave the seven year old the cue, the response was instant. Maxdaddy Bluechip (Billy Dobson) was also coming from the back of the pack in the Open when he surged up three wide. It appeared it would be that one who would swoop the group but Hug The Wind N shifted gears and breezed by that Maxdaddy Bluechip and a host of others in the stretch before coming on to win in 1:51.3. Maxdaddy Bluechip finished second while Americanprimetime (Phil Fluet) earned the show spot. For Hug The Wind N, who went winless in 2017, it was victory number four on the season and his first at Saratoga. The invader paid $14.00 to win in the mild upset and led an exacta and triple that came back $236.50 and $1,886, respectively. With the earnings from the Open score, Hug The Wind N moved his career bankroll to just shy of the $400,000 mark.
Live racing resumes on Tuesday night at Saratoga with a first post time set for 7:05pm.
Mike Sardella
Photo: Mikayla Gray
