LYONS LEGEND REMAINS UNBEATEN SUNDAY AT POCONO
PHHA / Pocono
WILKES-BARRE PA – The Stay Hungry – Skinny Dip two-year-old pacing filly Lyons Legend remained undefeated after four purse starts, taking one of two $35,000 divisions of her section’s Pennsylvania All-Stars event in a lifetime best 1:51.4.
After a :27.2 battle for the lead past the quarter, driver Matt Kakaley moved Lyons Legend to the lead, put up middle fractions of :56 and 1:24.2, then finished in hand while keeping pocketsitter Asweetbeachhere 2½ lengths behind. Trained by Jim King Jr. of Shartin N fame, Lyons Legend is owned by Threelyonsracing, and with two PA Sire Stakes wins under her girth already, the budding star filly may be back at Pocono on September 2 for her $250,000 Sire Stakes Championship.
Strange Fruit made the lead before the :28.3 quarter in her All-Stars division, then yielded to favored Ginger Tree Belle and sat in the pocket while the chalk put up midsplits of :56.4 and 1:25.2. The price of pacing went up in the last quarter as these two drew away from the rest, and Strange Fruit, the close second choice, was able to rally into a :27.1 back quarter to break her maiden in 1:52.3 in her second purse start, with the official margin a neck. The daughter of Sweet Lou – Bettor And Better was driven by Scott Zeron for trainer Linda Toscano and the partnership of Let It Ride Stables Inc. and Bottom Line Racing LLC.