Chakra dominant at Plainridge

Plainville, MA — The centers of energy were aligned for Chakra on Tuesday (April 21) as she turned in her best effort in two years while winning the $13,000 conditioned pacing headliner at Plainridge Park.

Sent off at 1-9, Chakra (Matty Athearn) went right to the front and never looked back. With Perfect Smile GB (Nick Graffam) sitting second in tow, Chakra went :27.3, :57.4 and 1:25.1, as only Delightville Diva (Cory Stratton) made any headway from behind.

Chakra continued to increase her lead as they rounded the last turn and when she reached the stretch, Chakra was a loose winner by 6-1/4 lengths in 1:54, a seasonal mark.

CHAKRA REPLAY

Chakra ($2.10) is owned by her trainer, Mark Eaton, in partnership with Robert Griffin.

Athearn had a driving triple during the day as he also won with Quite Beachy ($36.40) and Lyon’s Shining ($6.40).

Later in the $12,000 Trackmaster condition, Gabe Hanover (Jay Randall) got away seventh and watched as Ranaldi (Drew Monti) and Odds On Lauderdale (Nick Graffam) battled to the half in :55.3. As the race entered the backstretch, Odds On Lauderdale faded, Clearwater Courage (Kevin Switzer Jr.) pulled from third to advance to second and Gabe Hanover was activated from the back of the pack and flew into contention. Ranaldi was still in front as they turned for home, but Gave Hanover was three-wide on cruise control and blasted home the best by 2-1/2 lengths in 1:53.3.

GABE HANOVER FREPLAY

Gabe Hanover ($25.40) is owned by Bradford Veilleux and trained by James Dunn.

Gabe Hanover was one of three wins posted by Randall on Tuesday. He also won with Wichita Lineman ($31.20), who gave Dunn a training double, and South Street Dottie ($7.40) to complete his hat trick.

Mile Graffam also had two wins on the conditioning side, tying him with Dunn for top daily honors in that category.

Racing resumes at Plainridge Park on Thursday (April 23) at 4 p.m. and there will be a $8,978 carryover in the Wicked Hi-5 pentafecta wager in the sixth race.

Free full card past performance programs for every live card of racing at Plainridge Park can always be downloaded at their website (plainridgeparkcasino.com) under the “Racing” tab. You can also watch all the race replays on that same page.

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

by Tim Bojarski, for the Standardbred Owners of Massachusetts