Good Times For A Couple Of Good Joes

Guzzinati summed it up in the Freehold paddock: "No lunch, no sleep, soon we'll have to live on love."

Or maybe love of winning, which is what he and O'Brien kept on doing. By last Saturday night at Liberty Bell, the tour's final stop, Guzzinati led O'Brien for the championship by a mere 25 points. When O'Brien won the first race and 50 points with a typical drive—sitting on the rail in third, then slipping through in the stretch—the situation was reversed. Guzzinati had to settle for fifth, worth only five points. In the next race a second-place finish (25 points) by Guzzinati and fifth for O'Brien put them dead even at 870.

Grim, tight-lipped and not a new Joe at all by now, O'Brien looked over the pacer he had drawn for the final race, a beast called Scottish Dancer, and shook his head, while Guzzinati pointed to the head pole on his horse. High Ace, and conferred with his interpreter. "Mal-e. Mal-e," he said, jerking his head to the left. "Is bad." But not too bad once the race began. Guzzinati passed O'Brien at the half to take the lead, and though O'Brien jiggled and jumped as hard as he could, he could not catch the Italian. Indeed, he was lucky to hang in for third place. The final score after 13 days of racing 920-900.

"Primo Joe," Giuseppe said later, extending his hand. "It is my honor to beat best of all."