Muscular powers to victory

The 7-year-old veteran trotter Muscular had the lead when it mattered most in the Monday feature at Pompano Park, powering to the front in the shadow of the wire to capture the $15,750 winners-over trot in 1:56.3.

Owned, trained, and driven by Dave Mercer, Muscular settled comfortably in the pocket through the early stages of the Monday feature as Striking Osborne (Bruce Ranger) took the field, in post-position order, through opening fractions of :29 and :59. As the trotters marched down the backstretch, race favorite Talk About Me (Mickey McNichol) was angled to the outside from third place to begin a first-over bid, working his way to second as Striking Osborne reached the three-quarters marker in 1:28.1.

Striking Osborne entered the stretch with a one-length advantage, but was quickly overtaken by Talk About Me, who held the lead until the final yards when Muscular brushed by with a late charge down the center of the track to prevail by a head.

Muscular returned $10.40, $2.60, $2.60 for the victory. Talk About Me paid $2.40, $2.20 for second, while Striking Osborne brought in $2.60 for third.

With his triumph in the Monday feature, Muscular has now visited the winner’s circle in five of 15 starts this year, with victories in two of his last four outings. The son of Muscles Yankee has a seasonal bankroll of $33,235 with lifetime earnings over the $111,000 mark. (Pompano Park)

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