Husker Magic claims greyhound racing’s first national championship!
By Michael D. Frino
Husker Magic won 46 races in 2014, but none was as big as the one she recorded on Saturday evening at the Daytona Beach Kennel Club. The 68lb. female from Derby Lane drove past Storm Control in the late stretch to capture the $35,000 BetAmerica Daytona 550, and became the sport’s first National Champion.
Breaking from the number one box, Magic followed the Storm who broke smartly from the two box to take the early lead. Boc’s John Luke, the race time favorite, ran into some trouble on the first turn, but managed to get around third going into to backstretch. Penrose Lobo was sitting 4th, and the late closer Atascocita Act was 5th with considerable ground to make up. Trouble on the first turn had Lee Opera, Js Speedypebbles, and Mac’s Bonita out of contention early.
It was an exciting finish, as Husker Magic made her move late to capture the crown for the Abernathy Kennel and trainer Kayruth Abernathy. Magic is owned by the Haber Kennel, and ran under the Connell Kennel for the Daytona 550 race. Storm Control (Palm Beach Kennel Club) finished 2 lengths behind, and Boc’s John Luke (Bluffs Run) was third. Atascocita Act (Gulf Greyhound Park) rallied past Penrose Lobo (Derby Lane) to finish fourth.
The BetAmerica Daytona 550 was a collaborative effort by United Greyhound Racing and the Daytona Beach Kennel Club and Poker Room. “It’s like a triple-crown atmosphere,” said Fred Guzman, the kennel club’s director of racing. “This is our first-ever TV production. We’ve never had a bugle call before.” The TV production included a fantastic prerace show hosted throughout the evening by Vera Rasnake and Shane Bolender. It’s a unique opportunity to promote greyhound racing,” Guzman said. “We want to show that the owners, trainers, breeders and operators can all work together for the betterment of the sport.”
United Greyhound Racing would like to thank all those who contributed to making this race a success, and to the greyhound community for their enthusiastic support of the first National Championship race.
A special thanks to our major sponsor, BetAmerica, and all the other sponsors who helped make this race possible. Preparation is already underway for the 2016 National Championship race!
