Tall Cotton let Tamarind do the heavy lifting on the lead, then blew by him in the Lightning Lane to score a narrow victory in Monday's $18,000 Preferred Handicap Trot at the harness racing meeting at The Meadows.
After enjoying a pocket trip, Tall Cotton had little trouble outkicking Tamarind for Dave Palone.
The greater danger, however, was wide, where Trustworthy Kid was unleashing a strong late bid.
Tall Cotton kept a nose in front of Trustworthy Kid at the wire, prevailing in 1:53.1, while Tamarind saved show.
Ron Burke trains Tall Cotton, a 9-year-old Revenue S-B Cor Peatra gelding who now boasts $647,811 in career earnings, for Burke Racing Stable, Weaver Bruscemi LLC, Edwin Gold and Howard Taylor.
It was one of three wins on the 14-race card for Palone.
Evan Pattak
The Meadows Racetrack & Casino