Handsome Harvey, coming off a solid runner-up effort behind the streaking Officer Jim in last week’s Lloyd Arnold Pace, gets the top billing in Friday night’s $7,000 feature at Cal Expo.
There will be eight races decided under the Watch and Wager LLC banner with first post set for 7:05 p.m.
Handsome Harvey is a four-year-old son of Special Forces who is owned by Dave Haness and Luke Plano, and is reined and trained by Plano.
He was a solid winner of an Open II contest on April 14, brushing to command at the half and taking complete control of the mile from that point, reporting home by nearly five lengths with the 1:521. clocking, establishing a new lifetime mark.
Sent off as the 5-2 second choice in last week’s Arnold behind heavily favoured Officer Jim, he was unable to catch that rival as Officer Jim recorded his eighth straight victory in coast-to-coast fashion.
It was an excellent effort in that 1:50.3 tour while only missing by a length, and a repeat of either of his last two outings will make Handsome Harvey hard to deny in this spot.
Mystery Dragon has captured three of his last five starts, including the Don Fowler Memorial on March 26, and looms large for owners Rick Bertrand, Thomas Hardenburgh and Amy Fichtner with Bertrand the conditioner and Jessie Pacheco doing the honours.
Bettors Promise, Trey Rockette, Unfiltered, Grab And Go and California Rock round out the field.
$50,000 Championships and mandatory payouts Sunday
A pair of $50,000 California Sire Stakes Championships for the four-year-old pacers and mandatory payouts will be featured on Sunday’s closing night program.
The Sire Stakes for the mares will find Give Me This Dance and Divine Art renewing their rivalry, while J P Jetty and Worthy Opponent have accounted for the last two trophies for the males and will renew acquaintances on Sunday.
Give Me This Dance is a homebred daughter of Wind Me Up who carries the banner of Alan and Cheryl Sandbulte, takes her lessons from Jose Castillo and will have Luke Plano at the helm.
While she has had to settle for runner-up finishes behind arch rival Divine Art in the last three stakes dances for the division, she has been able to turn the tables on that one in an Open on March 5 and most recently two weeks ago in the Kirk Breed Free-For-All.
Sent off as the 5-2 second choice in that event, Give Me This Dance sat a perfect pocket trip behind Wonder Of Love, then surged in the stretch to win going away by 2-1/2 lengths while establishing a new mark with the excellent 1:51 final clocking.
Divine Art will be gunning for some revenge after a tough trip in the Kirk Breed. Gerry Longo owns, trains and drives the daughter of Outrageous Art, who has three stakes scores and the Alan Kirschenbaum on her 2023 victory list.
(With files from Cal Expo)