Jason Bartlett and Ron Burke are the leading driver and trainer, respectively, in North America in terms of both wins and money, and they continued their hot hands during a Saturday afternoon card at Pocono Downs at Mohegan Pennsylvania which featured five $30,000 divisions of a Pennsylvania All-Stars contest for the "glamour boys," the 3-year-old pacing males.
Burke trained the fastest winner, the Sweet Lou colt Railroad Station, who moved to the lead just past a 27 2/5 opener, put up mid-splits of 55 4/5 and 1:23 2/5, then dug down to hold off pocket-sitter Odds On No Limit by a neck in a lifetime-best 1:50 4/5. Yannick Gingras drove the chalk winner, second to the streaking Twisted Destiny in a PaSS event at The Meadows in his only other 2025 race, for Burke Racing Stable LLC., Weaver Bruscemi LLC., Hatfield Stables, and J&T Silva- Purnel and Libby.
Bartlett, who led all horsemen on the day with four trips to the winner's circle, guided the second-fastest All-Stars winner, Snack Attack, who took a new mark of 1:51 1/5. The Stay Hungry gelding sat third-in behind splits of 27 1/5, 55 2/5 and 1:23 2/5 set by favored Papi's Rocket (another Burkite), then got clearance when the pocket-sitter moved outside on the far turn and charged up the Pocono Pike to go by the chalk to win by 1 1/4 lengths (the biggest margin in the quintet of balanced stakes fields), with Delray Beach edged out for the deuce. Trainer Joe Bongiorno, who along with Burke were the only conditioners to send out two winning horses Saturday, handles the winner for the ownership of Philip Steinberg, Joe Sbrocco and JAF Racing LLC.
Two other All-Stars splits went in 1:51 2/5, and both were decided by a head. Sweet Lou earned a second stakes siring credit in one with the colt Lou's Starr, who parlayed a two-hole journey into a clocking matching his lifetime mark while overhauling pace-setter Waffle Blue Chip, who moved to the lead after a 27 1/5 opener, put up mid-race fractions of 55 1/5 and 1:23 3/5, and fought hard but was caught. A winner earlier this year at Rosecroft and Woodstock, Lou's Starr was driven by Matt Kakaley for trainer Scott Warnick and owner David Chansky.
► Sign up for our FREE DRF Harness Digest Newsletter
The other photogenic 1:51 2/5 winner was the Papi Rob Hanover colt Beach Club Monty, who overcame a first-over trip behind 26 3/5, 54 4/5 and 1:23 fractions to edge the potential pocket rocket Shipmaster. Beach Club Monty, who was favored after his only other seasonal start was a 1:50 3/5 Meadowlands win, succeeded for driver Scott Zeron, trainer Brett Pelling, and South Merrick Stables and Andrew Berg.
Papi Rob Hanover picked up another siring credit with the 20-1 Makes Sense, who won two qualifiers and then proved the punters wrong while sitting well off fractions of 28, 55 1/5 and 1:23 2/5, closing from fifth at the stretch call to win by a length over Bulldozer, who in turn photoed out favored leader Dreamboat Hanover. Andrew McCarthy was in the sulky for the white-hot trainer Bob Cleary, who is also co-owner with Let It Ride Stables LLC. and Carl Howard.
The fastest winner of the day was Primary Colors, a son of JK Endofanera who has now taken three of his last four after stalking fractions of 26 4/5, 54 3/5, and 1:22 1/5, then pouncing to win in 1:49 1/5 in the $16,500 fast-class pacing feature. Another of Bartlett's four-of-a-kind, the career winner of $359,820 is trained by Per Engblom for the partnership of Jeff Fought Racing and Brian Carsey.
Pocono will be back racing Sunday at 6 p.m. and Monday and Tuesday at 1 p.m.; the Monday card will feature the 2025 debut of freshman pacing filly champion Miki And Minnie in an All-Stars race.
--press release (PHHA/Pocono)--