Dover: No Lou Zing captures Progress Pace elimination
The field for the final 3-year-old stake for pacing colts and geldings took shape on Wednesday (11/18) at Dover Downs when 10 horses lined up for the $35,000 Progress Pace elimination.
Cattlewash and No Lou Zing were quickest off the gate, with the former posting a 26 4/5 opening quarter before the latter would brush to the lead past that call. No Lou Zing, who suffered a head defeat to Cattlewash from off the pace in last week’s Matron over the same surface, set fractions of 55 2/5 and 1:22 1/5 while facing pressure from a first-over Tattoo Artist.
After shrugging off his mid-race foe, driver Dexter Dunn asked No Lou Zing for a bit more at the head of the stretch and he easily held off Cattlewash to win by a half-length in a new lifetime best of 1:49 1/5.
"He's the leading driver in the country and has confidence in my horse, so why not control the race and your own destiny," said trainer Nancy Takter about the race tactics.
Catch The Fire sat third and angled late to get the show spot while Fortify took fourth after a second-over trip behind Tattoo Artist. The top eight in the field made the $325,000 final on November 25 at Dover. Always And Again and Indictable Hanover were eliminated after finishing ninth and tenth, respectively.
For No Lou Zing ($5.40 to win), a gelded son of Sweet Lou ownerd by 3 Brothers Stable, Rojan Stables and Caviart Farms, the victory was his seventh in 15 starts this year. His lifetime earnings (all made in 2020) jumped to $442,308 with the win.
| Post | Horse | Listed Driver | DRF M/L |
| 1 | Captain Barbossa | J.Bongiorno | 8-1 |
| 2 | Manticore | J.Stratton | 20-1 |
| 3 | Captain Kirk | A.McCarthy | 12-1 |
| 4 | Fortify | T.Tetrick | 8-1 |
| 5 | Catch The Fire | M.Wilder | 8-1 |
| 6 | Tattoo Artist | Y.Gingras | 12-1 |
| 7 | No Lou Zing | D.Dunn | 9-5 |
| 8 | Cattlewash | D.Miller | 2-1 |