It's hard to believe, but we are at that point of the season where the discussion about year-end harness racing awards for the meet at The Downs at Mohegan Sun Pocono is taking place. And, believe me, if you think it's hard to give out weekly honors when there are so many great choices, imagine what it's like when you have to pick between an entire season's worth of outstanding performers. That's coming up soon, but, for now, let's keep it simple and hand out the Weekly Awards.
PACER OF THE WEEK: ROCKIN RAMBARAN
Nobody has been any hotter at the top of the claiming ranks than this six-year-old gelding. Coming into his $25,000 claiming race on Saturday night, Rockin Rambaran had won five of his last seven races. His most recent three-race winning streak included back-to-back victories at Pocono on the first two weekends in October. To make it four in row, he'd have to do it for a new barn, having joined up with trainer Richard Banca following a claim in his previous race.
As the 4-5 favorite, Rockin Rambaran waited to make his move until after the field straightened out past the first turn. At that point driver George Napolitano Jr. sent the gelding first-over to brush past the pacesetter and take the lead just shy of the half-mile oval. Even with the effort he exerted to get past, he put a death grip on the lead on the back stretch.
Once they turned for home, Rockin Rambaran began to salt away his lead, keeping the closers from getting any ideas. He came home two lengths in front of second-place finisher Here Comes Swifty in 1:51:1. And it seemed as though he could have pushed the advantage much farther had he been kept to task. Claimed again from that race, Rockin Rambaran will be returning to the Chris Oakes barn for his next start in an effort to sustain his blistering hot streak.
Other top pacers this week include: Alta Leroy N (Pat Berry, Jeffrey Smith), a New Zealand-bred gelding whose condition win on Saturday night was his first win in the U.S. and came in the week's fastest pacing time of 1:50:1; David The Saint (George Napolitano Jr., Gilberto Garcia-Herrera), who stayed hot on Saturday night by winning his second straight claimer and fourth in his last five, getting it done this time in a career-best 1:50:4; and Black Queen (George Napolitano Jr., Jason Robinson), a mare who churned out her second straight claiming victory on Monday afternoon and did so in a career-best 1:52:1.
TROTTER OF THE WEEK: WATKINS
The ability to adjust to the tenor of a race is the hallmark of any good pacer or trotter. Watkins, a nine-year-old gelding trained by Jack Franklin, showed one style in his first two races after coming to Pocono from Yonkers by way of Chester. In those races, which netted him a win and a show, he was saddled with tough outside posts and had to come from off the pace.
On Saturday night, Watkins, made the 4-5 favorite as he dropped back down into the $14,000 condition trotting group, started from the #4 post, a much more advantageous position than in his first two tries at Pocono. Accordingly driver Jim Marohn Jr. drove him much more aggressively in the early going, as the veteran gelding brushed to the lead on the front stretch, thereby taking a lot of the variables that could conceivably trip him up out of the picture.
Watkins proved to be just as effective controlling the pace as he was in his previous starts coming from off of it. He was never seriously threatened once he took the lead, eventually coming home a comfortable 2¼ lengths in front of second-place Skates N Plates. Even more impressive was the winning time of 1:53, a new career-best and the fastest trotting time of the week at Pocono. Look for Watkins to move back up in class following this win, and, based on his recent performances, look for him to be ready for whatever the race throws at him.
Honorable mention on the trotting side goes to: Yozhik (Simon Allard, John Shawver), who moved up in class to win his second straight condition trot on Sunday night, picking up the victory in a career-best 1:55; Boffin (George Napolitano Jr., Anette Lorentzon), who shipped in from Ohio and scored in Sunday night's $20,000 featured condition trot in 1:53:4; and Taco Tuesday (George Napolitano Jr., Frank Antonacci), a 3-year-old who picked up a condition win over a tough field on Sunday night in 1:55.
LONG SHOT OF THE WEEK: ANGEL PLUS
Long shot of the year might be more accurate, as this condition pacer, driven by Eric Carlson, came home a winner at 99-1 on Tuesday night, paying off a hefty $204.40 on a $2 win ticket.
DRIVER OF THE WEEK: SIMON ALLARD
The past few weeks have been good to Simon, as he has found his hottest groove of the season; a pair of driving triples on Saturday and Sunday were emblematic of that recent success.
TRAINER OF THE WEEK: BILL MULLIN
Mullin is practically a training institution at Pocono, and his career continues to hum along, as proven by his driving/training double on Monday.
That will do it for this week, but we'll see you at the track. Feel free to e-mail me at jbeviglia@mohegansunpocono.com.
Jim Beviglia