Meadowlands: Callahan wins six on Saturday

It was a Callahan kind of night at The Meadowlands on Friday, as “The Captain” notched six wins on the card. The six victories moved Callahan into sole possession of third place in the driver standings behind Yannick Gingras and Dave Miller. In addition to book-ending the night with wins in the first and last race, Callahan will have a decision to make in the “Dash For The C-Notes” series, earning wins in two of the three divisions with Captain Primeau and King’s Cavalier.

Callahan also guided Undercover Strike to a victory in the trot feature, a $20,000 B-2/B-1 handicap. The six-year-old gelding was a convincing 1:52 4/5 winner in just his second start of the season for owner Frank Bellino & Sons, and trainer Jonas Czernyson, who recently brought his string north from his winter base at Sunshine Meadows.

Joe Bellino was present for the race and spoke on the winter's prep for what his connections are hoping will be a successful campaign. "Jonas was impressed with him all winter," said Bellino. "He told me early on that he felt 'Strike' was a top quality horse and we have paid him into all the major stakes this summer".

In this one, Undercover Strike rolled up uncovered and wore down the formidable mare Real Babe after she had enjoyed friendly fractions on a loose lead throughout. The pair sprinted hard from midway around the final bend before the winner edged clear by two lengths with a 27 1/5 sprint on the end.

A few races later, the top pacing mares lined up in a B-1/A-2 handicap for $22,500. Momma Rock scored a mild upset in that one benefitting from a perfect pocket steer by John Campbell.

Racing resumes on Saturday with a $30,782 carryover into the Pick 5. The wager covers races one through five and offers a 50-cent minimum bet. Post Time for the pick-5 carryover is 7:15 P.M.

- edited release (Meadowlands)