Quote:
Originally Posted by Poindexter
in Mondays 6th race at Mohawk, the 9 at 52-1 basically floated out and
when unable to find a tuck, he basically continued floating in the middle of the pack until past the 1/2 basically making it impossible for the 2/5 favorite Lucy Who to ever get clearance until it was far too late. I am guessing that the driver of the 9 was upset about being hung out so he found a way to get revenge. Meanwhile anyone who bet the 2/5 favorite basically watched their money go up in flames. He basically just floated right outside of Lucy Who and started rolling some 1st over when there were a few horses behind him around the half mile pole. Of course Lucy Who was hopelessly stuck behind horses throughout while the winner was opening daylight top of the lane. Lucy Who the #3.
Here is the replay.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B72CVtXsXIo
Now I know shit happens in harness racing but this is ridiculous. The driver of the 9 was basically race fixing whether intentional or not. He chose a tactic that made it impossible for the 2/5 favorite to even hit the exacta. The payoff indicates that there were no financial shenanigans, but the damage to whoever bet the favorite is clear as day. |
This type of driver tactics on the track is what gives a bad name to this wonderful sport called harness racing.
The fans who bet this horse, driven by Jean Bernard Renaud who has won a total of 14 times since January 2023, down to 40 cents to a dollars have got to be just plain crazy.
Also, with so many good drivers available at Mohawk these days, I would like to know the reasoning behind the trainer Julie Walker's decision to put this low percentage driver behind her horse.
I think calling it race fixing is a bit of a stretch. It is the job of the driver to keep his horse out of trouble, no one else's.
I am happy to report, however, these kinda races are few and far between.
