HAMBURG, N.Y. --- Jim Morrill Jr. has been what could be best described as a 'part-time' driver at Buffalo Raceway this season but incredibly he took a giant step toward winning the 2016 driving championship after posting a six-bagger on Saturday night (July 9).

 

Morrill Jr. moved his win total to 117 at Buffalo Raceway in just 293 attempts and leads runner up Todd Cummings who has 96 victories in 612 races with nine racing dates left on the season.

 

Southwind Whiski romps in Buffalo Raceway feature. Photo by Steve Roth

And while Morrill Jr. dominated the night in the sulky, the favored Southwind Whiski ($3.10) was the dominate force in the featured $9,000 pace by trouncing his six rivals in 1:55.3.

 

Scoring from the rail, Southwind Whiski (Ray Fisher Jr.) played give-and-go with Bad Fox to the opening quarter mark.

 

With fractions of 28.4, 58.1 and 1:27.3, Southwind Whiski exploded on the final turn and smartly paced away from the field with the help of a 28.0 final panel. Bad Fox (Lee Dahn) was second 2-3/4 lengths back while American Bull (Kevin Cummings) was third.

 

Co-owned by trainer John Mungillo and Thatsideofthefence LLC, the 8-year-old gelded Southwind Whiski (Bettor's Delight-Winona Hanover) now has four victories in 23 starts this season, earning $27,094 and $149,066 lifetime.

 

It was also a big milestone for trainer JD Perrin as he tripled and moved his seasonal win total at Buffalo Raceway to 100.

 

Racing will resume on Sunday afternoon at 12:30 p.m. with a 10-race card scheduled.