Yonkers: Older pacers put on a show in opening round of Levy series

P H Supercam made his return to the Levy series a winning one, taking advantage of the pole position and a pocket-trip to vault past a stubborn Foiled Again and score in 1:53 flat at Yonkers Raceway on Saturday night. Owned by Bamond Racing and trained by Jeff Bamond Jr., the eight-year-old won for driver Jason Bartlett.

The $50,000 Levy opening leg feature saw Foiled Again leave alertly from the outside post seven but need to work hard to grab control through a 27 3/5 opening quarter. Driver Yannick Gingras got the rating he wanted, backing down the middle half with fractions of 56 4/5 and 1:25. P H Supercam and Bartlett used the passing lane perfectly to go by late, but passing the wire Foiled Again was actually fighting back. Dancin Yankee, also making his seasonal debut like Foiled Again, rallied off cover to threaten in early stretch and finished third.

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Warrawee Needy came out firing for trainer Mark Ford scoring in 1:52 1/5 for driver Mark MacDonald in a division of the Levy. Sent off as the third choice in a field that included Big Town Hero (even money) and Clear Vision (2-1), Warrawee Needy controlled the first half in a dawdling 57 seconds and then sprinted off to win over 50-1 shot Windsong Jack. Clear Vision was a creditable third after racing uncovered the final half.

Like Warrawee Needy, this winter Michaels Power has been a force at Yonkers and he stepped up in a big way at odds of 9-1 to capture the most contentious of the five Levy divisions for driver Dan Dube. With Bettors Edge leaving between horses and favored Mach It So pressing out hard from the rail, Michaels Power got parked through the second turn for the front. The sting of the 26 2/5 opening quarter couldn’t stop the six-year-old. Michaels Power set fractions of 55 3/5 and 1:23 2/3 holding all rivals safe in a 1:52 1/5 mile. Lucan Hanover rallied for second with Mach It So suffering some traffic trouble and getting the third spot on the wire. Mark Silva trains Michaels Power, a winner for the fourth time in 2015.

Gingras took the first two $50,000 divisions of the Levy with the Burke-trained Beach Memories first and then the recent import Polak A in the second division. Beach Memories, a five-year-old, made a swift move to the lead past the half and opened ground on the field with a 26 4/5 third quarter. He was leg weary late but Gingras kept him alive to score in 1:52 2/5 over Fat Mans Alley.

Polak K was most impressive in his U.S. pari-mutuel debut. Gingras sent him to the front before the quarter and the seven-year-old trained by Tony O’Sullivan cruised to a 1:52 victory for local owners the Bellino family.

The Levy series continues with round two action next Saturday.