Comeuppance

It was a case of a good old horse against a good young horse. The youngster is Bret Hanover, the hulking (1,100 lbs.) four-year-old pacer whose 47 victories in 50 races made him the winningest race horse in the U.S. The oldster is Cardigan Bay, 10, a New Zealand-bred pacer whose own racing record showed 21 victories in 39 U.S. starts and total winnings of $586,981--$29,149 more than Bret Hanover. The race, a $65,000 stakes at New York's Yonkers Raceway last week, was appropriately called the Pace of the Century.

For a while it looked as though the two stars might be fighting for second money as a 44-1 shot named Sweet Luck leaped into the lead. Going into the last turn, Trainer-Driver Stanley Dancer abruptly swung Cardigan Bay wide to make his move; at almost the same instant, Driver Frank Ervin cracked his whip, and Bret Hanover rushed forward to challenge for the lead. He never quite got there. At the wire, old Cardigan Bay was a length ahead. Loser Ervin offered no alibis. "I had a good journey," he said. "But Cardigan Bay is a great horse."

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