Mare races to PPK win

Despite having battled through four lead changes by the half mile pole and then pressured by two horses to a :27.3 third quarter, Race Me Valerie and driver Kevin Wallis were still able to come away with their fourth win in five starts with a 1:53.4 effort in the $9,000 Mares Preferred Handicap Pace at Pompano Park Friday.



The feature started off with three horses all vying for the early lead. Hypnotize and driver Joe Pavia Jr. left from post four and has the early lead but both Race Me Valerie and Turn It On (Bruce Ranger) wanted control and were three wide on the first turn until Turn It On made it to the front with Race Me Valerie getting the pocket-trip at the opening quarter mile in :27.1.



Wallis quarter-moved Race Me Valerie and took the lead back from Turn It On, but by the half mile pole in :57 Ranger came first-over with Turn It On and was a half length up on Race Me Valerie, but could not clear to the lead in the backstretch. Pavia then made a bold three-wide move with Hypnotize before the three-quarters in 1:24.4.



As they raced around the final turn, Turn It On began to fade and Hypnotize came on and nearly took the lead away from Race Me Valerie. But Race Me Valerie proved to be too tough in the stretch for Hypnotize, winning by one and one-half lengths. All About Maggie (Tom Sells) was third.



A 5-year-old mare by Ball and Chain and trained by Linda Wallis, it was the fifth win in eight starts this year for Race Me Valerie. Yvette Prudenzano and Basil Kellis own Race Me Valerie.

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