Lake Charles (Well Said) continued what has been a terrific start to the season in the Open Pace at Saratoga Casino Hotel for trainer Amanda Kelley when the five year old pacer won the featured race on Saturday evening. He enjoyed a strong 2021 campaign at the Spa winning the Open three times in his first local season out of the Kelley stable, including two of the final three installments of the feature for pacers on the year. His successes spilled right over to ’22 as Lake Charles scored an Open win in both February and March at Saratoga before stopping the timer in 1:51.4 for a victory in a $22,500 race for top-flight pacers at Plainridge a couple of weeks ago.

On Saturday night, driver Leon Bailey powered Lake Charles out to the front end and despite posting first-half fractions of 27.1 and 56 seconds had plenty left for the final half en route to a wire-to-wire win in the $15,000 Open. Somebeach Baron (Shawn Gray) sat the pocket and finished second while Mikibytheseaside (Jay Randall) earned the show spot in a sizzling mile paced in 1:513. Lake Charles paid $4.60 to win as the 6-5 favorite and led an exacta and triple that returned $27.20 and $82.50, respectively.

The Open Pace win was the fifth for the Kelley stable who secured victories this season with Mach Le More and Belmont Major N in addition to three Open scores with Lake Charles in the first few months of the ’22 campaign at Saratoga. Lake Charles is owned by Scheigert and allies racing LLC of Saratoga Springs.

Live racing continues on Sunday afternoon at Saratoga with a matinee that begins at 12 Noon.

Saratoga Casino Hotel | Saratoga Springs, New York

Mike Sardella

Photo: Melissa Simser

Longtime local superstar Artful Way (Artistic Fella) made his return to Saratoga Casino Hotel on Saturday night. The Jackie Greene trainee last raced at the Spa in late March when he prevailed in the Open Pace. The ten year old recorded another Open win at Plainridge Park last month but then returned to town off a clunker. Artful Way was one of the 8-5 co-favorites in Saturday’s $15,000 feature and moved right out to the early lead with Billy Dobson guiding the way.

Repeal Or Replace (So Surreal), who took late board support to be the race’s other 8-5 shot, left to sit the pocket to Artful Way as the three-time Saratoga Pacer of the Year set fractions of 27.2 and 57 seconds in the first half. Leading driver Jimmy Devaux popped the pocket around the final turn and the battle was on as the co-favorites traded strides in the stretch before Repeal Or Replace took over under the shadow of the wire. Artful Way came up second best while longshot Somebeach Baron (Shawn Gray) finished third in his local debut.

Repeal Or Replace is owned by Karma Racing Inc of Parkland, FL and trained by John Podres. The win in the Open Pace wasn’t the first in the local career of the five year old who scored in the Spa’s featured race for pacers last November. Paying $5.30 to win on Saturday night, Repeal Or Replace led an exacta and triple that returned $19.40 and $78, respectively. The win in the Open was one of four on the evening for Jimmy Devaux as he padded his lead in the local driver standings while seeking to repeat as the track’s leading driver after winning his first Spa title in 2021.

Live racing continues on Sunday afternoon with a first post time of 12 Noon.

Mike Sardella

Photo: Melissa Simser

On an evening that saw an historic upset in the Kentucky Derby, the featured race at Saratoga Casino Hotel consisted of a shocker of its own. The 2-5 betting favorite in the $31,900 J.P. Morel Memorial Pacing Series Final was JM’s Rockin. This Monticello invader had not only gone eight for eight in the win column this year but hadn’t trailed at any point in a mile this season.

Making every pole a winning one en route to put together the incredible win streak, JM’s Rollin was poised to once again cut the mile in the Series Final. Behind the gate though, the race’s big favorite made an untimely and extended break taking him out of the mix at the get go. The Final became wide open at that point and two-leg winner Mega Miki (Leon Bailey) took to the first-over path approaching the half. A closer in each of his consecutive victories heading into Saturday night, Mega Miki posted a career-best matching 1:55 win in leg two of the series when he sprung an upset at odds of 8-1 with Bailey in the bike.

In the Final, the four year old Joel Flanders trainee came a back half in under 57 seconds before drawing away from his rivals in the stretch to become the ninth winner in the history of the J.P. Morel Memorial Series. 43-1 shot Lannister Hanover (Wally Hennessey) charged hard late to finish second while leg one winner Pound For Pound (Shawn Gray) closed to be third in a race that was a longshot bettor’s delight.

The winner paid a middling $12.80 on top but the exacta and triple returned a bulky $631 and $4,721, respectively. Mega Miki is owned by Joel and Karen Flanders of Argyle, NY.

Live racing continues on Sunday afternoon at Saratoga with a first post time set for 12 Noon. There will be a Pick Six Jackpot of $7,619. The Pick Six is a $.20 wager.

Mike Sardella

Photo: Melissa Simser

Record Year, trained by Jaymes McAssesy and driven by Billy Dobson, won Saturday night’s feature at Saratoga in 1:53.2

photo by: Cheyanne Mandy

Hudson Phil prevailed in the first installment of the Open Pace this season at Saratoga Casino Hotel in early February. The Jackie Greene trainee has been a force at the Spa for the last few years and is once again establishing himself as a top-flight pacer in the early stages of the ’22 campaign. After springing an upset on opening weekend, Hudson Phil had a second, a third and a fourth in the local Open before hitting the board in consecutive starts at Yonkers Raceway. On Saturday night, the seven year old was back in town and wound up as the 8-5 betting favorite in the $15,000 Open Pace at the Spa. Billy Dobson piloted the Greene-trained pacer who sat back in the early going as several rivals slugged it out in the first half. After watching the first half go in 56 seconds, Hudson Phil started to make his move and tipped three-wide approaching the three-quarter pole before swooping the group and opening up a big lead. Hudson Phil drew away from the competition to win by almost seven lengths in 1:53 to record his second Open win of the season. Mikibytheseaside (Jay Randall) made his Open Pace debut on Saturday and finished second despite drawing post eight while Elite Retreat (Jimmy Devaux) earned the show spot. Hudson Phil paid $5.30 to win and led an exacta and triple that came back $17 and $164.50, respectively. The winner is owned by the Kellogg Racing Stables of Queensbury, NY who now have four victories in the Open Pace this year, two with Hudson Phil and two with local superstar Artful Way. While Dobson scored the victory in the Open, Leon Bailey was the evening’s driving star as Vernon Downs’ back-to-back top reinsman drove five winners on the Saturday card.

Live racing continues on Sunday afternoon. There is a Pick Five carryover of $2,460, a Pick Six jackpot carryover of $1,624. First post time is set for Noon.

Mike Sardella

Photo: Melissa Simser

With no Open Pace on the docket, the $13,000 Winners Over for pacers was the feature at Saratoga Casino Hotel on Saturday night. Mikibytheseaside (Always B Miki) made his 2022 debut in the feature coming off a pair of qualifiers in which he went coast-to-coast. The Andy Sardella trainee came to the Spa last fall and rattled off victories in his first three local starts before taking the winter off. On Saturday, he was the 9-5 second choice in the wagering when driver Jay Randall pointed him out to the lead in the Winners Over race. Following a reasonable first half that went in 57.3, the four year old cruised through a third quarter in 27.3 while hounded by the favored Oregon Trail (Billy Dobson) who was first-over. Mikibytheseaside put that rival away in the stretch and reported home a winner in 1:54 in his return. Oregon Trail was a game runner-up while Northern Rein (Leon Bailey) earned the show spot. Mikibytheseaside paid $5.90 to win and led an exacta and triple that returned $19.20 and $240, respectively. The winner is owned by Mike and Bill Pozefsky of New York.

Live racing continues on Sunday afternoon at Saratoga with a matinee that begins at noon.

Mike Sardella

Photo: Melissa Simser

Artful Way was named Pacer of the Year at Saratoga Casino Hotel in three consecutive seasons from 2016-2018. The Jackie Greene-trained standout was a bit lightly raced for a time following the three award-winning campaigns but any thoughts that his “Open career” was over were put to bed last year when the veteran won seven times en route to a $116,032 season. Heading into Saturday’s start in the Open Pace, Artful Way owned a pair of victories on the year, one of which came in the Saturday night featured race. Leading driver Billy Dobson sat behind the ten year old pacer who was the public’s 4-5 betting favorite in the $15,000 feature. After cruising unopposed through a first half that went in 57 seconds, Artful Way was met with the challenge of Skyway Victor (Jay Randall) who had a win and a second in his last two starts in the Open. That rival fought gamely on the outside but proved to be no match to the two-time Horse of the Year at the Spa. Artful Way held strong in the stretch to score in 1:53.3 for his second Open victory in ’22. Skyway Victor was the runner-up while Elite Retreat (Jimmy Devaux) earned the show spot. In his 69^th career victory, Artful Way paid $3.70 to win and led an exacta and triple that returned $12.80 and $51.50, respectively. The winner is owned by the Kellogg Racing Stables of Queensbury, NY.

Live racing continues on Sunday afternoon at Saratoga with a first post time of Noon.

Mike Sardella

Photo: Melissa Simser

A pair of claimers led veteran conditioner Jim Martuscello to a training double on Saturday evening at Saratoga Casino Hotel. Martuscello runs a small stable at the Spa and added two new members to his barn a few weeks ago when owner Pasquale Baia, of Amsterdam NY, claimed pacers Better Moonon Over and Gibus. Better Moonon Over made a break in his first start off the claim but the six year old has since rebounded in style. Following a second-place finish, Better Moonon Over was a decisive in his next start leading up to Saturday’s try in the $5,000 claiming ranks. Jimmy Devaux powered Better Moonon Over out to the early lead and from there, it was over. The claiming pacer cruised away to win by better than six lengths in 1:55.1 to complete his back-to-back jacks.

Gibus was claimed for $12,500 by Baia and Martuscello last month and finished second in his first start for new connections in late February. After a three week layoff, it was back to the track on Saturday for Gibus who moved up into the $15,000 claiming ranks for the first time. Reinsman Brett Beckwith sat patiently with Gibus throughout the first five-eighths of a mile before unleashing him approaching the three-quarter pole. The seven year old put one in the win column for the first time this year when he surged past the front-runner before powering away to prevail by two and a quarter lengths in a mile clocked in 1:55.2 to complete a double for his owner and trainer. Gibus paid $10.000 to win in the mild Saturday upset. Martuscello had started out his ’22 campaign with four wins and four seconds in just ten seasonal starts.

Live racing continues on Sunday afternoon at Saratoga with a first post set for noon.

Mike Sardella

Photo: Melissa Simser

Skyway Victor (Tellitlikeitis) has been impressive for his new connections in the early stages of the 2022 campaign at Saratoga Casino Hotel. Acquired this offseason by owners Mark Eaton and Robert Griffin, Skyway Victor won his Spa debut when he went coast-to-coast in 1:55 to prevail in a $13,000 Winners Over for pacers on February 19^th. After not factoring while starting from post eight in his first try in the Open, Skyway Victor drew post six for Saturday’s start in the $15,000 Open Pace. Driver Jay Randall found early speed from the four year old pacer who got to the first quarter in 28 seconds before reaching the half in 57 seconds flat. The race’s favorite Belmont Major N (Shawn Gray) was making his local debut and he stormed up to challenge the leader approaching the three quarter pole but Skyway Victor would not be denied. The Eaton trainee dug in and finished in a 27.3 final quarter en route to victory in 1:53, the fastest mile of the season for any horse at the Spa thus far. Belmont Major N was the runner-up in his first local try while Crockets Cullen N (Larry Stalbaum) earned the show spot. The winner paid $6.90 to win and led an exacta and triple that came back $14 and $49.20, respectively.

Live racing continues on Sunday afternoon at Saratoga with a matinee that kicks off at Noon.

Mike Sardella

Photo: Melissa Simser