Crockets Cullen N & Larry Stalbaum

Crockets Cullen N (Christian Cullen) added another win to his lengthy tally of Open Pace victories in his career at Saratoga Casino Hotel on Saturday night as the veteran pacer went coast-to-coast. The ten year old veteran made it look easy as he cruised out to the early lead with his owner/trainer/driver Larry Stalbaum guiding the way. Crockets Cullen N was the even-money betting favorite on Saturday as he traveled unopposed for the majority of the mile, clicking off a first half in 56.4 before powering away from his rivals to win in 1:52. The horse who owns the fastest time of the season at Saratoga from a 1:50.3 score back in July, Crockets Cullen N recorded his decisive victory by three and a half lengths. His win was the second in the Open in 2021 but adds to his total as the winningest Open Pacer at the Spa over the course of the last three seasons. Michaels Boy (Brian Cross), the longest shot on the board, was the runner-up to Crockets Cullen N in the feature while Quagmire Bluechip (Brett Beckwith) earned the show spot. The Stalbaum stable star paid $4.10 to win and led an exacta and triple that returned $45.60 and $222, respectively.

Live racing resumes on Monday afternoon with a matinee starting at Noon.

 

Mike Sardella

Photo: Cheyanne Mandy