Saturday night gifted a large crowd at Batavia Downs with an eventful racing card, capped by the Robert J. Kane Memorial Invitational Pace with a purse of $75,000. Eight of the top Open pacers took to the track, with Covered Bridge leaving everyone in the dust with a stellar finish.
With Jordan Stratton in the reins, Covered Bridge secured the fifth position right after the gates opened. Joe Bongiorno’s This Is The Plan sprinted off the gate, claimed the lead before the :27.2 quarter. Despite a first-over move by Idealsomemagic A, led by Tyler Buter, the top four positions remained unaltered leading into the far turn. With a swift push, Covered Bridge powered ahead of Idealsomemagic A at the top of the stretch, and crossed the finish line 1-¾ lengths ahead, closing in 1:52.
Covered Bridge, with this significant victory – the third consecutive one, boosted its total earnings to $1,072,640. Mark Ford is the horse’s owner with Jeff Gillis as the victorious trainer.
The New York Sire Stakes also featured in the event which saw three divisions of three-year-old trotters compete across both genders.
For a whopping $119,800 purse, seven colts and geldings vied with Chapercraz coming out on top. Closing 3-3/4 lengths ahead in 1:54, Chapercraz was just a fifth shy of the Batavia Downs track record for three-year-old trotting geldings. The victory swelled Chapercraz’s earnings to $336,632 in 2023.
The trotting fillies competed across two short fields with Usosweet Blue Chip winning the first race of $57,000. Outpacing Midwind Success, Usosweet Blue Chip led from start to finish, racing home by 3-1/2 lengths to clock 1:56.4.
The second trotting fillies’ race of $58,100 saw Royal Filly emerge victorious. Taking the lead early, Royal Filly dominated the competition and completed the race at an impressive 1:56.2.
The schedule also included four $20,000 NYSS Excelsior races, each respectively claimed by Kennebago, Serendipity, Metro Matty, and Seven Over.
Racing enthusiasts at Batavia Downs can look forward to the return of live racing on Wednesday, Aug. 30, at 6 p.m. with a carryover of $8,813 adding to the excitement of the 13th race Jackpot Hi-5 pentafecta.
