(Youwillwishyouhad and reinsman Kevin Cummings. Photo courtesy of Paul White.)
By Tim Bojarski, Batavia Downs Media Relations
The $10,000 Open pace feature at Batavia Downs was up for grabs for most of the race. But a patient drive by leading reinsman Kevin Cummings proved valuable as Youwillwishyouhad ($7.70) won his first race for his new connections on Saturday night (Aug. 8).
It was a cavalry charge off the gate as Ponyta Boy (Shawn McDonough), Beachfront (Dave McNeight III), Youwillwishyouhad (Kevin Cummings) and Fireyourguns (Mike Caprio) all had sights on the lead. The field momentarily settled behind the still battling Ponyta Boy and Beachfront, who eventually got the front. As they passed the quarter in 27.1, Fireyourguns pulled from fourth and took the front by the top of the stretch. He then led the group to the half in 56 as an outer flow began.
Now in two rows heading up the backside, Elite Awards (Drew Monti) tipped three-high with fresh legs as they breezed by three-quarters in 1:25. At that point, Youwillwishyouhad snuck off the rail from his perfect trip and into contention outside of the charging Elite Awards. At the top of the stretch, Fireyourguns ran out of ammunition and it became a two-horse race. Elite Awards tried hard to hang on but Youwillwishyouhad wore him down and powered on to win by two lengths in 1:54.
It was the third win in a row and eleventh win in 20 starts for the 4-year-old Artiscape gelding and the win brought his 2015 bankroll up to $60,178. Youwillwishyouhad is trained by J.D. Perrin for Mark Jakubik and Tessa Roland, who just claimed him last week for $31,250.
Kevin Cummings, Drew Monti and Jack Flanigen all scored driving doubles on the card.
