By Tim Bojarski, for Batavia Downs
(Photo courtesy of Wendy J. Lowery)
Batavia, NY — After scoring an upset win from an outside post last week at Batavia Downs, Mucho Macho moved up in class and did the exact same thing at The Downs in the $9,500 featured trot on a wet and chilly Friday (Nov. 22) night over a track rated sloppy.
John Cummings Jr. left from post seven and shot right to the front with Mucho Macho, who got to the half in 1:00.2 while BJ’s Smitty sat smartly in the pocket. Entering turn three, Jacked (Joe Chindano Jr.) came first-over from third and made his way alongside the leader under a highly animated drive. When they passed three-quarters, Cummings popped the plugs on Mucho Macho and the trotter began to pull away from the field. Coming off the final turn, Jacked faded and BJ’s Mitty dropped into the passing lane at the top of the stretch, trying to make up ground. But Mucho Macho refused to give way and trotted home the best to win in 1:59.
It was the eighth win of the year for Mucho Macho ($14.40) who is owned and trained by Julie Wagonblott.
Joe Chindano Jr. led all drivers on Friday with three victories during the card while Sam Smith was top trainer, winning two.
Live racing resumes at Batavia Downs on Saturday (Nov. 23) with post time at 6:00 p.m. and there will be a carryover of $2,386 in the Jackpot Super Hi-5 pentafecta in the 14th race.
Free full card past performance programs for every live card of racing at Batavia can always be downloaded at the Downs’ website (bataviadownsgaming.com) under the “Live Racing” tab and all the racing action can be viewed as it happens for free at the Batavia Downs Live Facebook page.