Dover: Primo Maschio guts out DSBF series sweep

Following decisive wins in both preliminary legs, Primo Maschio dug deep to head off Lew Not Lou for a 1:52 3/5 triumph in the $110,000 Delaware Standardbred Breeders' Fund (DSBF) series championship for 3-year-old male pacers on Thursday (Dec. 18) at Bally's Dover.

Primo Maschio and driver Trae Porter landed second-over on the first turn behind Shore Not Beach (driven by Pat Berry), who worked to clear early leader Lew Not Lou (Jason Thompson) for the lead at the end of a 27 second first quarter. Left uncovered off the first turn, Primo Maschio drove on to assume control of the terms with a circuit to go, and the Badlands Hanover-Primadonna gelding rolled to the half in 55 seconds.

Up the backstretch and through the far turn, Primo Maschio faced sustained pressure from Lew Not Lou, who re-emerged from third to force a 28 2/5 third quarter and pose an even bigger threat off the home turn.

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"I was a little worried," said Porter of Lew Not Lou taking aim at Primo Maschio off the corner. "He got to my saddle pad, but as soon as we got to the top of the stretch, my colt dug in deeper. He's such a nice horse."

Primo Maschio kept Lew Not Lou a neck at bay while Shore Not Beach stayed on from the pocket to finish third, just a length shy of the top pair.

Walter Callahan trains Primo Maschio, now a 19-time winner with $414,618 in earnings from 27 career starts, for Forrest Bartlett. As the overwhelming 1-10 favorite, Primo Maschio paid $2.20 to win.

--press release (DSBF)--