Larry Stalbaum enjoyed a monster afternoon on Saturday at Saratoga Casino Hotel. The veteran horseman scored a grand slam on the matinee card including a sweep of the double feature. Stalbaum’s Rocknroll Runa A and Makeorbreakzaz S swept the co-features, each securing victories in their respective $18,000 Opens. Both Stalbaum Open winners got pocket rides on Saturday as Rocknroll Runa A sat the two-hole to Mullinax (Aaron Byron) in the Open Pace before powering up in the passing lane to win by a neck in a mile clocked in 1:53.2. The victory was the fifth of the season for Rocknroll Runa A, his third in the local Open and his first since mid-March. Prevailing at odds of 3-1, Rocknroll Runa A held off the favored Binge On Yankee (Kyle Swift), who came up second-best, while getting up to edge Mullinax in the final strides.
The Open Trot went the way of Makeorbreakzaz S who, like stablemate Rocknroll Runa A, parlayed a pocket ride to secure the Open score on Saturday. Co-favored at odds of 2-1, Makeorbreakzaz S recorded his first career win in the local trotting feature when he closed up the lightning lane in the stretch to get the better of last week’s Open winner Dealin With Dewey (Wally Hennessey). Dealin With Dewey closed quickly before finishing second in the co-feature while fifteen-time 2026 winner Wolfpack Zach (Jacob Cutting) got up to earn the show spot. Makeorbreakzaz S, whom Stalbaum co-owns with Eric Prevost, completed the grand slam for his stable after veteran pacers Mr Mclaren N and Franco Tyson A scored front-running victories for the Stalbaum barn which went four-for-four on the matinee card.
Mike Sardella | Saratoga Casino Hotel | Saratoga Springs, NY
CMS Photography photo
