Yeudiel is dialed in at 30-1 for 6th victory

Before beginning a four-month vacation, Yeudiel went off at odds of 5-1, 12-1 and 71-1 and finished sixth, seventh and eighth in his last three races of 2023. So it was no surprise that he was 30-1 on the board in his return in the fourth race at Mountaineer Casino and Resort on Tuesday night.

The big surprise was that Luciano Hernandez gunned the Gone Astray gelding right to the lead out of the gate, and the 7-year-old lulled the rest of the field to sleep, winning by 1 1/2 lengths with 6/5 favorite Moon Over Montana closing in rapidly after Yeudiel had opened up by six lengths in mid-stretch.

Yeudiel lit up the board at $62, getting the mile in 1:42.95, and earning a check for $4,582. Bred by SJT Racing, he’s earned $60,011 on a record of 6-11-7 in 35 starts.