Live harness racing returns to Massachusetts today (April 11) when Plainridge Park welcomes back the best horses, trainers and drivers in New England who will compete over the next eight months during its 23rd season of live harness racing. The five-eighths mile speed strip is groomed and ready for competition and the nine events on opening day will commence at 4 p.m.

The live racing schedule for 2022 has changed format from last year. It starts out with a Monday-Tuesday-Thursday rotation for April, May, June and July until Friday is added on July 29 and continues through the end of August. Post time for all race days from April through August is 4 p.m. The one exception is the Grand Circuit card held on Sunday, July 24 that features the Spirit of Massachusetts Trot and the Clara Barton Distaff Pace. Post time for that day is 2 p.m.

In September, racing reverts back to Monday-Tuesday-Thursday until September 18 when Sunday is added through the month of October, with the exception of October 30 (Halloween). Post time also moves back to 2 p.m. Sundays are then dropped in November and the Monday-Tuesday-Thursday schedule returns for the final month of the meet until Thanksgiving Thursday, Nov. 24, which will be dark and raced on Friday, Nov. 25, which is closing day. Post time in November is 1 p.m.

Also new for this year is that Plainridge Park will offer free downloadable programs to its customers for the entire meet at its website (plainridgeparkcasino.com). These full past performance programs are located by clicking the "Racing" tab on the main menu bar. 

The betting menu features an early and late Daily Double in race one and eight, Exactas and Trifectas available in every race, Superfectas available in every race (except Wicked Hi-5 races), Wicked Hi-5 Pentafecta in the sixth and last race, Pick-3 in race three and six, and Pick-4 in race four. The minimum wagers for each are as follows: Daily Double $2, Exacta $1, Pick-3 $1, Pick-4 50 cents, Trifecta 50 cents, Superfecta 20 cents and Wicked Hi-5 20 cents.

The 2022 season will also see the most robust stakes schedule ever offered by Plainridge Park and for the first time, features four Grand Circuit events.

Besides the return of the $250,000 Spirit of Massachusetts Trot and the $100,000 Clara Barton Distaff Pace, two new stakes have been added this year and both are presented in conjunction with the Harness Horseman’s Association of New England (HHANE). The $100,000 Paul Revere Pace for three-year-old pacers will be held on Thursday, April 28 and the $100,000 Battle of Bunker Hill Trot for three-year-old trotters will go behind the gate on Monday, May 16. These races were made possible by the continued support of the Race Horse Development Fund and this additional Grand Circuit presence at Plainridge Park will bring even more national attention to the quality harness racing product in Massachusetts. 

After those spring and summer events conclude, the stakes action will continue well into the fall when the $2.24 million (est.) Massachusetts Sire Stakes return for another record-breaking season. The stakes that highlight the quality trotters and pacers being foaled in the Commonwealth have produced 14 new stakes or track records over just the past two years and this year’s crop of eligibles looks to be the strongest ever to hit the track. The meteoric rise in the quality and number of Massachusetts-bred Standardbreds in recent years is another direct result of the positive effect the Race Horse Development Fund has had on the sport in the state.

Here is the complete 2022 Massachusetts Sire Stakes racing schedule:

• Sunday, Sept. 25 - Three-year-old first leg
• Monday, Sept. 26 - Two-year-old first leg
• Sunday, Oct. 2 - Three-year-old second leg
• Monday, Oct. 3 - Two-year-old second leg
• Sunday, Oct. 16 - Two-year-old third leg
• Monday, Oct. 17 - Three-year-old third leg
• Monday, Oct. 24 - Two & three-year-old finals

The overnight racing is also expected to be the most competitive ever as a result of the rock-solid returning driver colony teaming horses from some of the top trainers in the region.

Last year’s dash driving king was Bruce Ranger, who won 181 races and just over $2 million in purses. Runners-up Shawn Gray (151 wins and $1.5 million) and Drew Monti (135 wins and $1.7 million) will also be back along with Nick Graffam, Kevin Switzer Jr., Drew Campbell, Jay Randall and many more. Also joining the regulars on opening day are Luke Hanners and Brad Irvine.

On the training side, last year’s leader Jimmy Nickerson (60 wins and $798,640 in purses) will be back in full force after moving his base of operations away from Saratoga to race full time at The Ridge. Nickerson wintered his entire barn in Pinehurst, North Carolina and has everything fresh and ready to go. Sheena Cohen (46 wins and $503,794 in purses) and Melissa Beckwith (41 wins and $470,457 in purses) were forces to be reckoned with all season in 2021, finished right behind Nickerson and are expected to be at the top again this year.

Plainridge Park’s opening day card on Monday features a $25,000 Winners-Over Pace with a full field of eight going postward. The group is led by morning line favourite Put To Right, who has been racing successfully at The Meadowlands over the winter and ships in off his season’s best 1:50.3 victory last week. Trainer Joe Nelson has Kevin Switzer Jr. at the lines, who was his regular driver at Plainridge last year where he started 28 times in 2021 winning twice, finishing second 10 times and third seven more. He earned $71,750 as a result of his efforts and posted a seasonal mark of 1:51.4 as well.

(With files from Plainridge Park)