Santanna, Nitro draw posts three and six in Rooney final

Santanna Blue Chip and Badlands Nitro, who won last week's $40,000 eliminations for Yonkers Raceway's Art Rooney Pace, landed post positions three and six, respectively, for this Saturday night's $538,270 final.

Santanna Blue Chip, a millionaire son of Art Major, wired his trial field in 1:54.2. It was the first-ever Empire start for the statebred, who enters the final with carerr earnings of $1.15 million. The colt, who wrapped up his freshman season with wins in the Governor's Cup and Breeders Crown, has hit the board in all 15 lifetime starts.

The father/son, trainer/driver tandem of Carl and Jody Jamieson also co-own (with Jeffrey Gillis and George Arthur) Santanna Blue Chip.

Carl Jamieson co-owns and trains Legacy N Diamonds (Tim Tetrick, post four) who is pari-mutuelly paired with "Santanna." Legacy N Diamonds, a son of The Panderosa, was a non-factor fourth in his elim to Badlands Nitro (Brian Sears, post six). The son of Badlands Hanover, co-owned (with John Celii) by trainer George Teague Jr., won the  faster of last week's pair of elims in 1:51.4. That effort--in a four-horse race to eliminate no one (provided no happenstance)--was two-fifths off  Riyadh's 1993 track standard for soph pacing colts.

Badlands Nitro has won five of his six '08 tries ($590,353), the only loss a second-place effort (to the undefeated Somebeachsomewhere) in  the $1.5 million final of the North America Cup.

Like Santanna Blue Chip, Badlands Nitro has a betting buddy of in his own, in the presence of Idle Hour (Jason Bartlett, post five). That one  was fourth to Santanna Blue Chip in his elim.

Teague trained Southwind Lynx to victory in the '07 final of the Rooney, at a million dollars the richest race ever in Westchester.

The field for the final of the '08 Art Rooney Pace, with declared drivers...1--Dragon King (Dave Miller); 2-Moon Beam (Eric Abbatiello); 3-Santanna Blue Chip (Jody Jamieson); 4-Legacy N Diamonds (Tim Tetrick, coupled with "Santanna"); 5-Idle Hour (Jason Bartlett); 6-Badlands Nitro (Brian Sears, coupled with Idle Hour); 7-Meant  to be Me (John Campbell); 8-Dontloseyourdayjob (Yannick Gingras). 

Saturday night's program is undercarded by the $325,230 final of the Lismore Pace for 3-year-old fillies. The Lismore, going as the eighth race, is led by elim winners Cheyenne Trish (Campbell, post four) and Thong (Tim Tetrick, post six).

The field for the Lismore, with declared drivers...1-Riverbank Hanover (Sam Schillaci); 2-Chocolate Art (Bartlett); 3-Hannah Isabel  (Gingras); 4-Cheyenne Trish (Campbell); 5- Ladycino (Jim Morrill Jr.); 6-Thong (Tetrick); 7-Good News Lady (Greg Grismore); 8-Ideal Newton (Ron  Pierce). (Yonkers)

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