'Boy' bullies field in Big M feature

EAST RUTHERFORD, NJ – With stiff winds in their faces down the backside, the front end wasn’t where you wanted to be Friday night at The Meadowlands, but the veteran 7-year-old harness racing gelding Bully Boy Hill, despite some anxious moments, was able to go wire-to-wire in the featured TrackMaster 77.5 on the trot.

Off a nose defeat in his Big M return last week, Bully Boy Hill was bet down to 1-5 in the field of six (after two scratches) and was used early to grab the lead out of the first turn. He reached the quarter on the point in a leisurely :29.3.

The pace continued sleepy down the backstretch, which gave Remarkable De Vie the opportunity to sprint up on the rim and put some heat on the leader as the half was timed in a slow 1:00.

“Tough to say (if Vinny Ginsburg, driving Remarkable De Vie, was going to get by me),” said winning driver Brett Beckwith, “but he came from last and I still had the plugs in.”

Another rated fraction had the duo at three-quarters in 1:29.3, but ‘Bully’ was starting to pull as Remarkable De Vie made a break, making it clear that the veteran son of Muscle Hill-Lauramarie would prevail with ease, and the Eric Mollor trainee did just that, extending his advantage from 2¾ lengths at the head of the lane to 3½ at the finish.

BULLY BOY HILL REPLAY

 

Massive Matter was second with Soeur Mary placed third after Gillys De Vie was disqualified for racing inside several pylons through the stretch drive.

“He was not great gaited but we managed to get the job done,” said Beckwith. “I wasn’t happy with the way he was going but it turned out pretty good. He’s got a lot of high speed when he’s right and as long as Eric can keep him going, he’ll climb the class ladder a little bit.”

After completing the mile in 1:56.4, Bully Boy Hill lifted his lifetime stats to 20 wins in 130 tries, good for earnings of $277,536 for owners Durazzano Stable. He paid $2.40 to win.

CARRYOVER REPORT: The $1 PK 8 went unhit for an eighth consecutive offering, upping the carryover to $87,062 for Saturday night.

Winner’s odds for the sequence were 2-1, 3-5, 8-5, 3-1, 2-1, 1-5, 9-2 and 5-2. Those with six correct collected $207.40.

A double carryover of $20,356 enticed punters to pour $67,745 of “new money” into the 20-cent Pick-6 pool, and after a sequence that saw winner’s odds of 1-5, 9-2, 5-2, 5-2, 7-1 and 23-1, those with winning tickets cashed in for $25,979.54.

A LITTLE MORE: Mark Herschberger and Joe Bongiorno tied atop the driver leaderboard with three winners each, while Ivan Llopez took three walks down victory lane to top the trainers. … All-source wagering on the 14-race program totaled $2,283,590. … Racing resumes Saturday at 6 p.m.

For complete race results, click here: US Trotting results.

by Dave Little, for The Meadowlands