Strike Impact Hits Paydirt in Buddy Diliberto

Chester Miller and Patrick Dupuy’s Strike Impact struck gold with a solid one-length score in Saturday’s $75,000 “Buddy” Diliberto Memorial Handicap at the Crescent City oval.

Trained by Pat Dupuy, the 8-year-old Smart Strike gelding benefitted from a stalking trip flawlessly engineered by jockey Shaun Bridgmohan,who gained the lead in upper stretch and then withstood the late-running Hotep, owned by Sam-Son Farms.

“I just wanted to give him a better trip than I did last time,” said Bridgmohan in the winner’s circle. “In his last race I think I just got in his way.”

Strike Impact, claimed by his trainer and co-owner in 2009, returned surprisingly high mutuels of $19.40, $9.60 and $4.20, accomplished the about 1 1/16-mile distance in 1:46.38 over the firm Stall-Wilson Turf Course and increased his career earnings to $657,393 with his 18th win from 69 lifetime starts.

Hotep paid $5 and $3.40 in the second spot while David Holloway Racing’s Dubious Miss was a neck farther back in third and returned $2.80.