Trainer Rob Harmon came to Saratoga Casino Hotel with three members of his stable on Saturday night. The veteran conditioner wasted little time enjoying success when in the evening’s first race his Bettor Roll On A (Bettor’s Delight) sprung the upset in an $11,500 conditional race for pacers. The Aussie invader outclosed his rivals in 1:55.1 to score in his Spa debut with reinsman Jay Randall at the controls.

After Rob Harmon’s Ima Happy Fella GB (Rogue Hall) had to settle for second-best in the evening’s co-featured $12,500 fourth race, the invading trainer completed a training double when Black Edition N (Bettor’s Delight) came roaring out of the pocket in the stretch before powering away to a decisive    score with young pilot Matt Athearn in the sulky. Black Edition N, who won for the third time in his last four starts, set a new lifetime mark in his Saturday score when he stopped the timer in 1:53.4. With the Saturday training double, Rob Harmon now has ten wins in 27 local starts in 2023.

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

Mike Sardella

Photo: Jessica Hallett

Saratoga Casino Hotel | Saratoga Springs, New York

Nuttin But Finesse (Art Major) enjoyed a breakout season in 2022, one in which he won nine times and earned just shy of $90,000 en route to becoming a nominee for Pacer of the Year at Saratoga Casino Hotel. The Janice Connor trainee won the Open Pace twice in ’22 and began his 2023 campaign squaring off against the track’s top pacers again.

Nuttin But Finesse posted a third and a second-place finish in his two starts leading up into Saturday night’s try in the $17,000 Open Pace. Leon Bailey piloted the five year old who powered out to the early lead and enjoyed soft fractions in the first half of the feature, coasting through lap one in 57.4 before being confronted by a rival in what would be a sizzling third quarter of 26.4.

Nuttin But Finesse registered his third career win in the Saratoga Open when he hit the wire first in 1:53 in Saturday’s feature after drawing away from his rivals to score by a decisive four lengths. Im No Outlaw N (Jay Randall) sat the pocket to the winner and wound up as the runner-up while Uncle Jord A (Shawn Gray) earned the show spot.

Nuttin But Finesse paid $8.80 to win in the mild upset and led an exacta and triple that returned $71 and $181.50, respectively. The five year old is owned by the partnership of Connor, Stronka, Mc Gee and Lovett.

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

Mike Sardella

Photo: Jessica Hallett

Saratoga Casino Hotel | Saratoga Springs, New York

Uncle Jord A (Rock N Roll Heaven) was the runner-up in the Open Pace at Saratoga Casino Hotel on two occasions before winning the feature on March 25^th. Alicia Gray trains the Aussie invader who has been strong in his first season for his connections. Following a tough post draw led to a fifth-place finish in his start leading up to Saturday’s try, Uncle Jord A was aggressive in the early going in the $17,000 Open as reinsman Shawn Gray quarter-moved the eight year old pacer to the lead. Once he got there, he never looked back. Uncle Jord A enjoyed leisurely fractions on the engine as he hit the half in 58.2 before checking in at three-quarters in 1:26.4. A first-over Nuttin But Finesse (Leon Bailey) fought gamely overland as the favored Rocknroll Runa A (Matt Athearn) came charging hard in the final quarter. Uncle Jord A held strong in the stretch to win in 1:54.4 and record his second victory in the local Open for owner Doug Overhiser of New Smyrna Beach, FL. Rocknroll Runa A hit the board for the sixth consecutive week as he motored home to finish second while Nuttin But Finesse earned the show spot. Uncle Jord A paid $8.50 to win and led an exacta and triple that came back $17 and $62, respectively. With the earnings from his Saturday score, Uncle Jord A is now less than a thousand dollars away from reaching the quarter million dollar mark in career bankroll.

Live racing continues on Sunday afternoon at Saratoga with a matinee slated to begin at noon.

Mike Sardella

Photo: Jessica Hallett

Saratoga Casino Hotel | Saratoga Springs, New York

Jay Randall has been on a tear in the opening months of the 2023 season at Saratoga Casino Hotel and on Saturday evening, the veteran reinsman added another five wins to his bulky total. The 61 year old Randall sits second in the local driver standings despite doing double duty piloting at Plainridge Park in Massachusetts. Randall guided a pair of Jackie Greene trainees to Saturday scores including the winner of the featured race. St Lads Sterling (Control The Moment) was coming off a win in last weekend’s $14,500 installment of the Winners Over for pacers when he repeated on Saturday night. In a race that saw first half fractions of 26.4 and 55.3 be posted by Kaporal (Mitch Cushing), the 2-1 second-choice in the wagering, St Lads Sterling powered off the rail heading to the three quarter pole before going toe-to-toe with Kaporal in the stretch. At the wire, it was St Lads Sterling who proved victorious in a mile clocked in a sizzling 1:52 on a warm evening in the Spa City. The winner, who is owned by Janie Kellogg and the Jackie Greene Stables of Fort Ann, NY, paid $5 as the betting favorite. Kaporal was the runner-up while longshot Lindas In Heaven (Mcgwire Sowers) earned the show spot. The victory with St Lads Sterling was the third of what would be five on the night for Randall and three for Greene as that tandem teamed up for a victory with veteran pacer Wyatt J earlier in the evening and with local legend Artful Way later on the card.

Live racing continues on Sunday afternoon with a matinee beginning at noon.

Mike Sardella

Photo: Jessica Hallett

Saratoga Casino Hotel | Saratoga Springs, New York

Control Tower put the finishing touches on a terrific Step Up To The Plate Claiming Series on Saturday night at Saratoga Casino Hotel. Jared Bako claimed the veteran pacer out of the first leg of the series and saw the eleven year old score victories in leg two and three heading into his try in the $33,100 Saturday Final. Leading driver Jimmy Devaux sat behind Control Tower in his pair of wins leading up to the Final in which he drew post seven in the eight-horse field. Devaux again blasted Control Tower off the gate and surged him up into the early lead, a lead he would never relinquish. The Bako trainee went coast-to-coast in 1:56 to conclude a massively successful series for the claiming pacer. Longshot Fatheroftheyear (Shawn Gray), the only participant of the Final to not have recorded a win in the three-leg series, closed well to finish second on Saturday while Nerve Of Steel N (Phil Fluet) earned the show spot. Control Tower moved over the half million dollar mark in lifetime earnings with the win. He was the race’s 9-5 betting favorite and led an exacta and triple that paid $34.40 and $99, respectively.

Live racing resumes on Monday afternoon with a matinee that begins at noon.

Photo: Jessica Hallett

Saratoga Casino Hotel | Saratoga Springs, New York

There were four divisions of the third and final leg of the Step Up To The Plate Claiming Series contested on Saturday evening at Saratoga Casino Hotel. Much like in the previous legs, the favorites did not thrive in the early going on Saturday as horses had their final chance to accrue earnings towards next weekend’s $30,000+ Final. Control Tower (Panspacificflight) became the first repeat winner in the series when he went wire-to-wire with Jimmy Devaux in the sulky. The eleven year old utilized early speed to overcome the outside post in his seven-horse division of the series and wound up a wire-to-wire winner for owner/trainer Jared Bako paying $8.50 to win in the mild upset. Control Tower’s final time of 1:55.4 proved to be the fastest of the leg three winners.

Trainer Lisa Zabielski claimed Its Just Too Much (American Ideal) out of leg one and after the veteran pacer made a break last week, the ten year old rewarded his new connections with a victory in leg three when he emerged from a scramble in the stretch to score in 1:57.4 over a track labeled ‘sloppy.’ Chris Long piloted the upset winner who was dismissed at odds of 6-1.

The favorites finally began to prevail late in the evening when Rogue Cheddar (Betterthancheddar) scored as the odds-on public choice. A runner-up in each of the first two legs, Rogue Cheddar sat the pocket on Saturday and wasn’t able to shake loose until late in the mile. When he did, the Zack Gray-trained pacer surged up the passing lane to score in 1:57.4. The final $17,500 division of leg three went the way of Nerve Of Steel N and reinsman Phil Fluet. Like Rogue Cheddar, Nerve Of Steel N a runner-up in the first two legs of the series but got the job done on Saturday to punch his ticket to next weekend’s Final. His trainer Bob Davis co-owns the New Zealand import with Mike Mancini. Nerve Of Steel N paid $5.60 as the 9-5 favorite in leg three.

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

Photo: Jessica Hallett

Saratoga Casino Hotel | Saratoga Springs, New York

With no Open Pace on the Saturday night card at Saratoga Casino Hotel, there were two Winners Overs that served as co-features. Trainer Amanda Kelley had the favorites in each one although both of her speedy pacers found themselves in much different positions. Willie Go West N (Auckland Reactor) moved up into the $14,500 Winners Over off a victory in the U.S. debut two weeks ago, a race that saw him secure a wire-to-wire score in 1:52.4. On Saturday, the Kelley trainee drew post eight for his big test against strong competition and leading driver Jimmy Devaux found some early speed from the New Zealand invader who landed in third in the early going. When Devaux gave Willie Go West N his cue approaching the half, the rising star powered impressively past his rivals before drawing away to again win in 1:52.4 to match the lifetime mark he set in his Spa debut two weeks ago. Kelley owns and trains the seven year old pacer.

Kelley again teamed up with Devaux on Saturday with Mach Le More A (Mach Three) who drew the rail in the $15,525 second division of the Winners Over races. The runner-up after sitting the pocket in last week’s try at the same level, Mach Le More A controlled his own destiny this week and set pretty leisurely fractions on the engine before facing a stiff challenge in the stretch from pocket-sitting Hespoisedtopounce A (Matt Athearn). Mach Le More A dug in and survived a photo to score his second win of the year to complete a sweep of the features for his connections. Mach Le More A is owned by the S &K Misfit Racing stable of Greenfield Center, NY. Continuing what has been a terrific start to his 2023 season, Devaux piloted five winners on the Saturday card.

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

Mike Sardella

Photo: Jessica Hallett

Saratoga Casino Hotel | Saratoga Springs, New York

Trainer Lisa Zabielski and driver Chris Long teamed up for a pair of winners on the Saturday card at Saratoga Casino Hotel. Zabielski and Long won their first Open of the year when Optical Illusion N (He’s Watching) prevailed in the $16,000 feature. Long retook the lead heading to the opening quarter with the race’s 4-5 betting favorite and set a fast tempo with the Zabielski trainee who rattled off fractions of 27 and 56 seconds in lap one. Optical Illusion N was tasked with fending off a strong first-over bid from Belmont Major N (Jimmy Devaux), a task in which he succeeded holding off that rival to prevail in 1:52.1. Belmont Major N went a long way overland to finish second while Rocknroll Runa A (Matt Athearn) earned the show spot. A nominee for Pacer of the Year in 2022 at the Spa, Optical Illusion N’s victory was his first in the Open this season. He led an exacta and triple that paid $39.80 and $215, respectively. The seven year old New Zealand invader, who won twelve times in ’22, is owned by Kim Zabielski and his trainer Lisa Zabielski. Long and Zabielski teamed up later in the card for a victory with Mount Royal who scored in leg one of the Step Up To The Plate claiming series for pacers. Long piloted three winners on the Saturday card in total.

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

Mike Sardella

Photo: Jessica Hallett

Saratoga Casino Hotel | Saratoga Springs, New York

Optical Illusion N (He’s Watching) instantly became a force after coming to Saratoga Casino Hotel last year. Lisa Zabielski trains and co-owns the New Zealand import who had a breakthrough season in 2022 scoring twelve wins en route to earnings of more than $114,000. For his efforts, Optical Illusion N was named a nominee for Pacer of the Year at the Spa in his local rookie season. The ’23 campaign kicked off last Saturday night (Feb 4) for Optical Illusion N who was dismissed at odds of 29-1 despite drawing post two for his try in the Open Pace. Shaking loose late in the mile, the Zabielski trainee came up just shy of upsetting having to settle for second-best in a mile clocked in 1:54.2.

This week, with no Open Pace on the docket, the $14,500 Winners Over was the evening’s feature and Optical Illusion N drew the outside post for his second start of the season. His regular driver Chris Long asked for a bit of early speed from the six year old pacer who found a spot mid-pack in the early going.
The rising star came motoring home in the stretch while surging past his rivals to win the Saturday feature in 1:53.3. With the would-be favorite taken out of the betting due to suffering broken equipment before the start, he wound up as the 2-1 second choice in the wagering and paid $6.50 to win. The favored Belmont Major N (Jimmy Devaux) finished second while Stop Staring (Billy Dobson) earned the show spot. Optical Illusion N is owned by Lisa and Kim Zabielski.

Live racing resumes on Monday afternoon with a matinee beginning at noon.

Mike Sardella

Photo: Jessica Hallett

Saratoga Casino Hotel | Saratoga Springs, New York

It was opening day for the 2023 campaign on Saturday evening and an eleven race card got the season started on a cold night at Saratoga Casino Hotel. Invader Take A Gamble (Bettor’s Delight) came to town off back-to-back wins in 1:52 at Yonkers and drew the outside post in the $18,200 Open Pace on Saturday. Leon Bailey piloted the Jared Bako-trained pacer who cut the mile in the season’s first feature. Leading in a first half of 56.4, Take A Gamble was met with the challenge of Spa first timer Rocknroll Runa A (Larry Stalbaum) when got past the leader turning for home. In the stretch though, Take A Gamble rallied back and reclaimed the lead late in the mile before hitting the wire first in 1:54.2. Longshot Optical Illusion N (Chris Long) shook loose in the lane and charged hard to be second while Rocknroll Runa A tired late and wound up as the third-place finisher in the Open. Take A Gamble, who is owned by Stephen Klunowski of Ontario, Canada, paid $6.40 as the race’s favorite and led an exacta and triple that returned $112 and $424, respectively.

Live racing will take place on both Sunday and Monday afternoon with first post time set for noon for each of the matinees.

Mike Sardella

Photo: Melissa Simser

Saratoga Casino Hotel | Saratoga Springs, New York