Trainer Tyler George, who has had a fantastic 2016 meet at Miami Valley Raceway (winning at a 30 per cent clip), swept both the Open I and Open II trotting features on the Sunday (May 1) afternoon matinee.
Il Mago (Josh Sutton) needed the help of Southwind Pepino (Hugh Beatty Jr.), who actually finished a neck ahead in the $20,000 Open I, but who made an unfortunate break just a step from the line, necessitating a judge’s official placement to second. Cimeronken (Kyle Ater) was just a length and a half behind in third.
Despite being assigned the outermost post position in the $15,000 Open II, Flight Of The Kiwi was able to wear down his competition to score a 1:55.2 triumph. The gelding never saw the pylons, yet driver Josh Sutton swung the winner three-wide around the final turn and beat Third Pat (Ed Greeno Jr.) and Boytown (Peter Wrenn) to the wire. It was the first win of the season for Flight Of The Kiwi in his fourth start.
CC Racing LLC of Illinois owns Il Mago (Kadabra) and Flight Of The Kiwi (Ken Warkentin), who are both seven-year-old Ontario-sired trotters.
Miami Valley enters its final week of racing for the year with matinees on Monday and Tuesday, followed by stakes-laden programs on Friday and Saturday night plus Sunday afternoon. The Friday and Saturday evening cards will feature multiple $40,000 divisions of opening leg Ohio Sires Stakes action for sophomore pacers and trotters; while the Closing Day Sunday matinee will feature a pair of $100,000 Grand Circuit stakes for the best older pacing and trotting mares in North America.
(With files from Miami Valley Raceway)