My Perfect Rhyme gets up in time

Winless in four appearances at Pompano Park this year, My Perfect Rhyme chose the opportune time to end her seasonal drought, getting up in the final yards to take the inaugural $55,800 Frances Dodge Van Lennep Filly and Mare Pacing Series final on Friday in a career-best 1:52.

Starting from post three with Anthony Napolitano at the lines, My Perfect Rhyme bided her time in fifth place as a trio of horses battled for the early lead, with Velvet Eileen (Wally Hennessey) winning the early fight for the front, showing the way through an opening quarter mile in :27.4

“In the post parade I knew my horse was going to be good tonight as she was nice and relaxed,” Napolitano said from the winner’s circle following the victory. “Leaving out of there I saw a few of them out there battling on the front-end, so I just tried to sit back and wait for the right opportunity.”

Not content to take a similar approach, race-favorite Carousel Frame 
(George Napolitano Jr.) was moved aggressively to the lead after being parked on the first turn, wrestling the top spot away from Velvet Eileen before taking the field to the half-mile marker in :55.4.

As Carousel Frame showed the way down the backstretch, Up Front Lady (Ricky Macomber Jr.) was the first to move off the pylons, advancing on the leader through a three-quarters split in 1:24.1 while providing live cover for My Perfect Rhyme.

“When (Ricky) Macomber came out with his horse, I knew he would be the one to follow,” Anthony Napolitano said. “My brother was on the front with his mare, and  he's done the winning in the past with that one, so I knew that I needed to keep an eye on him too.”

Carousel Frame entered the stretch with a one-length advantage and dug in gamely to hold off the persistent challenge of Up Front Lady, but had no answer for My Perfect Rhyme, who rolled off cover and charged down the center of the track to post a 1 ¼-length victory.

“We knew she was going to be good here, as she’s raced well in the past,” Napolitano said. “We’ve had bad post positions with her the last couple of weeks, and we’ve just been sitting back waiting for this day. The trip, the horse, and just everything worked out well for us tonight.”

My Perfect Rhyme returned $14, $4.40, and $5.80 for the upset victory. Carousel Frame paid $3 and $2.10 for second, while Up Front Lady brought in $4 for third.

Owned by Tanah Merah Farms LLC of Springfield, Ill., and trained by Lyle McGilveary, My Perfect Rhyme has visited the winner’s circle in 22 of 53 lifetime starts, with career earnings of $154,542.

Bred in Illinois by Cottonwood Farm, My Perfect Rhyme is a 5-year-old daughter of Cole Muffler, out of the Abercrombie mare Panfastic. (Pompano Park) 

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