No Monkeys Allowed was all business in winning the featured $11,000 Open Pace, while Rick Plano posted victories in half of Saturday night’s 12 races at Vernon Downs.
Rallying from fourth in the early going, No Monkeys Allowed ($13.40) advanced to third entering the payoff patch, and then pounced on the leaders Western Tsunami (Jonathan Roberts driving) and Pacinello (Plano) in the final 16th of a mile to earn a one and a quarter length triumph in a career-best 1:50.3 performance.
Brian Connor drove for trainer Edgar Clarke in the evening’s first race as the five-year-old son of Rocknroll Hanover-Weeping Wanabe earned his fourth tally at the 85-program meeting, his eighth win of 2012 and his 16 lifetime score. Robert J. Orr and Garry Jonas own the swift-footed gelding, who raised his lifetime earnings to $200,956.
Plano, the current leader in driving wins with 153 and training tallies with 77, procured first-place finishes in the third, fifth, ninth, 10th, 11th and 12th events to lift his victory count for the three-night weekend to 11. Saturday’s six scores ties (Tim Tetrick and Jim Morrill Jr.) for the most tallies by a teamster during the track’s 59th season.
Trainer Clarke completed a double in the Early Double when the trotter Scarlet Spurs (Roman Lopez steering) secured a lifetime-best 1:58 victory in Saturday’s second race for the Jamie Marra Racing contingent.
(Vernon Downs)