Buckeye Bullet collects fifth straight win in Michael Rowland Memorial Handicap
Odds-on favorite Buckeye Bullet had no problem extending his winning streak to five races with a wire-to-wire victory in Saturday’s $75,000 Michael Rowland Memorial Handicap at Thistledown.
Sent to the front in the six-furlong sprint for Ohio-accredited horses by jockey Luis Quinones, the 4-year-old Buckeye Bullet ($3) clicked off fractions of 22.28 and 44.06 seconds while never seriously challenged. He completed the distance under a hand ride in 1:11.24.
Eightthehardway, cutting back to a sprint after four consecutive route races between 1 1/16 and 1 1/4 miles, chased Buckeye Bullet through the stretch, and finished two lengths behind the winner. A two-time stakes winner last season, Eightthehardway was eight lengths clear of third-place My Pardner Cal.
A son of Dark Kestrel trained by Sharon Ruberto for Ruberto Racing Stable, Buckeye Bullet is now 6 for 13 with earnings of $176,339.