The stars of harness racing produced fireworks on the track during a stakes-filled Fourth of July Saturday card at The Meadowlands that featured a sole elimination for the Meadowlands Pace and a host of record performances.

Forgoing a bye to the $810,000 USD Grade 1 Meadowlands Pace final, Brandon Blvd served notice to his nine rivals in the $71,429 elimination of the midsummer classic for three-year-old pacers with a devastating 1:47.3 win.

Dexter Dunn floated Brandon Blvd forward off the gate before settling him in fourth on approach to the first turn. Meanwhile, Obliterate (Patrick Ryder) pushed clear of Ubrute (Yannick Gingras) and Bookie J (Jason Bartlett) before yielding control to Ubrute at the end of a :27.1 quarter. As soon as Ubrute took over, Bartlett had Bookie J out and moving from third with Brandon Blvd following a live tow to the lead up the backstretch.

Brandon Blvd accelerated to seize the top spot through a :53.3 half and cleared to the pegs nearing the far turn before bracing for a second move from Obliterate, who had been shuffled to fourth up the backstretch. Obliterate gained into third to offer mild pressure to Brandon Blvd at the 1:21.1 three-quarter station, but the son of Downbytheseaside-Alexis Faith shook away effortlessly upon cornering for home and capped his career-best 1:47.3 mile with a :26.1 sprint home under a hold from Dunn. Sweet Lovin Lou (Scott Zeron) mounted a four-wide rally around stalled cover to take second, 1-1/2 lengths in arrears. Ubrute split foes to save third after being compromised by traffic off the far turn.

"His lungs are his biggest attribute," said Andrew Harris, who trains 10-time winner Brandon Blvd for Punisher 11 Stable. "He can carry his speed a long way and let Dex[ter Dunn] do what he wants to do."

Harris, who together with William Pollock and Bruce Areman comprises the Punisher 11 partnership, opted to forgo a bye to the Pace final with his star colt, who had not raced since he finished second from post 10 in the North America Cup on June 13, for two reasons. He wanted to give his horse a needed start, and to try to avoid getting stuck with another unfavourable post in the final. And, by virtue of his elimination win, Brandon Blvd was guaranteed to draw a post between one and six.

"We had a bad post at the North America Cup," said Pollock. "We were trying to make sure that doesn't happen here, and he accomplished that.

"Brandon is probably the best horse we've ever had. We're very confident in him."

Brandon Blvd has now earned $949,451 in 15 career starts and is three-for-five this season. As the 1-5 favourite, he paid $2.60 to win.

The post draw for the Meadowlands Pace final was conducted during the Saturday card. The full field is listed below.

$810,000 USD Meadowlands Pace (G1)
Post - Horse - Driver - Trainer - Morning-Line Odds
1. Toby Ornot Toby – Tim Tetrick – Scott DiDomenico – 20-1
2. Brandon Blvd – Dexter Dunn – Andrew Harris – 3-5
3. Lindy Dragonwater – Joe Bongiorno – Ron Burke – 20-1
4. Gentlemans Club – Andrew McCarthy – Aaron Lambert – 8-1
5. Melillo – Ronnie Wrenn Jr. – Ron Burke – 10-1
6. Bookie J – Jason Bartlett – Chris Ryder – 12-1
7. Sweet Lovin Lou – Scott Zeron – Dan Lagace – 6-1
8. Al Papi – Yannick Gingras – Ron Burke – 10-1
9. Azrael Blue Chip – Brett Beckwith – Besim Odza – 30-1
10. Ubrute – Yannick Gingras – Ron Burke – 15-1

The final will be held on Saturday, July 11 at The Meadowlands.

On To Norway rebounded from his streak-snapping defeat a week ago in historic fashion as he became the fastest trotter in North American harness racing history with a 1:48.3 victory in the $328,571 Stan Bergstein Graduate Series Trot Final (Grade 2) for four-year-olds.

Driver Yannick Gingras sent the Ron Burke pupil forward out of post nine and found him a seat in fourth as Walspea (Tim Tetrick) sped to the lead in a :26.3 first quarter. Gingras idled up the backstretch as Walspea maintained sharp speed to a :53.4 half until Mr Mouton (Ake Svanstedt) edged off the pylons from third to take a shot in the last turn. Walspea remained on the muscle through the bend as Mr Mouton stalled, prompting Gingras to duck to the pylons with On To Norway as the field went to three-quarters in 1:21.1. Despite the quick fractions, Walspea stayed game in the stretch as pocket-popping Meshuggah (Andrew McCarthy) rolled off stride with favourite Super Chapter (Dexter Dunn) closing over the top from third-over, but On To Norway emerged from his inside seam to split rivals late and strike the winning blow by a neck. Super Chapter settled for second with Walspea finishing third.

“Tonight he was sharp,” Yannick Gingras said after the race. “I didn’t think he was quite as good last time, but the first time I drove him he was pretty aggressive in the post parade. Last time he raced he was pretty nice and I was like ‘Maybe he’s not quite himself.’ Tonight he was definitely full of himself in the post parade and he delivered. I thought I had it like 50 yards to the wire. I felt pretty confident there.”

On To Norway won 27 races in a row from April 2025 to June 2026 before finishing second in the last Graduate prelim. That glut of successes, plus Saturday's victory, have brought his career record to 32-for-39 with $1,180,264 in earnings. Ron Burke trains the gelding by Muscle Massive-One Class Act for owners Burke Racing Stable LLC, Frank Baldachino, Black And White Stable and Michael Rosenthal. On To Norway paid $9.40 to win in his fifth victory from six outings this season.

The 1:48.3 mile was also a world record for an older trotting male, shaving a tick off Homicide Hunter's 1:48.4 mark. It broke the all-age record at The Meadowlands, reduced On To Norway's own divisional track standard for a four-year-old gelding trotter that he set on June 12, and lowered the 1:49.1 stakes record set by Atlanta in 2019.

Captain Optimistic equalled the fastest mile paced in North America this season — which was set previously on the card — with a 1:46.3 victory in the $328,571 Stan Bergstein Graduate Series Pace final (Grade 2).

Leaving from post five, driver Scott Zeron sent the Nancy Takter trainee to the top through a :26.2 first quarter and stayed on the motor for the rest of the mile. Go Go Grasshopper (Joe Bongiorno), parked from the start, tried to push up the rim to a :53.3 half, but Captain Optimistic chugged along with speed that spun his rival's wheels as he opened his advantage to three-quarters in 1:19.4. Captain Optimistic charged through the lane under steady Zeron encouragement to post a 3-3/4-length win in a lifetime-best 1:46.3. Prince Hal Hanover (Todd McCarthy) sat third at the pylons around the track and grabbed second from pocket-chaser Swingtown (Yannick Gingras).

“He’s matured a lot, I think that’s mostly what’s been the difference this year,” Takter said after the race. “He obviously grew up, filled out and got stronger. He was always a big boy and I think just getting stronger and being able to carry his speed has helped him a lot. The horse has been super all year – he’s bred mares this spring – and he’s just shown up in top form. Hopefully a lot of mares got in foal and hopefully those owners that bred their mares to him are going to be real excited in the spring next year when they have a baby by him.”

A four-year-old stallion by Captaintreacherous-Cinamony, Captain Optimistic won his third race from five starts this season and his 15th race from 36 starts in his career, boosting his bankroll to $1,816,883. He’s owned by the Captain Optimistic Syndicate. The win price was $7.40.

Bourbonista S broke the North American record for a female trotter with a 1:48.4 performance in the $184,857 Six Pack (Grade 3) for mares. 

Bourbonista S pushed for the lead and cleared to control from Miracle Maven (Yannick Gingras) passing a :27.2 first quarter. Bravo Angel S (Jason Bartlett), among the early firers, floated to the middle of the pack out of post eight and marched forward when parked to grab the lead from Bourbonista S before scorching the clock at the half in :53.4.

Bravo Angel S cruised on the lead rounding the final turn while Bourbonista S loomed from the pocket past a blistering 1:21.4 three-quarters. Bourbonista S surged to the top in the stretch and powered to victory by 3-1/4 lengths, with Warrawee Michelle (Ake Svanstedt) closing late for second and longshot R Dutchess (Tim Tetrick) finishing third.

“She’s developed mentally. She’s in a good spot right now,” trainer Marcus Melander said after the race. “Since we pulled the shoes two starts back here in the mud, she’s been getting better and better. She was racing barefoot in Sweden a couple of times even when she was third behind Allegiant, who won the Elitloppet. So it’s not a surprise that she was this good, but she’s a year older now and she’s just getting better and better.”

The 1:48.4 mile reduced the North American record for a trotting distaff, taking a fifth off the 1:49 miles set by Manchego and Atlanta. It also eclipsed the previous track record for aged trotting mares of 1:49.2 set in 2024 by Jiggy Jog S

Bourbonista S, the five-year-old Face Time Bourbon-Affinity Kronos mare, has now made $351,940 and won eight times from 28 starts. She is three-for seven this year for owners Deo Volente Farms LLC and Panamera Racing. She paid $7.80 to win.

Earlier in the card, Lexus Kody and Yannick Gingras controlled the $187,500 JL Cruze (Grade 3) for trotters in a track-record-equalling 1:49.4 win.

The 2025 Trotter of the Year, trained by Ron Burke, was sent off the strong favourite in the seven-horse field and took the lead from the early speed of Sir Pinocchio (Jason Bartlett) with Aetos Kronos S (Dexter Dunn) sitting third as Gingras brought Lexus Kody to the first station in :27.4. He led the field to the half in :55 as action soon brewed from off the speed with Up Your Deo (Ake Svanstedt) making an outside move to be the main challenger to three-quarters in 1:23. Up Your Deo confronted Lexus Kody in a hard drive down the stretch, but Lexus Kody was best at the wire by a neck. Aetos Kronos S landed the show spot.

“Last time [at Woodbine Mohawk Park] we weren’t quite sure where he was at – figured he needed some racing,” Gingras said after the race. “I was happily surprised; he was really, really good, then tonight I was definitely expecting it. I think he’s back on his game and that’s when he got sharp last year. He’s game no matter which way; he doesn’t need a trip. He’s just a class horse. Down the stretch, Ake’s horse wouldn’t go away and it was definitely a good battle to the wire. Four or five pylons to go, I knew I had him beat then, but it took a battle.”

Lexus Kody, who matched the track record for aged trotting geldings that he established on Hambletonian Day in 2024, is owned by Burke Racing Stables LLC, Weaver Bruscemi LLC and Phil Collura. The eight-year-old son of Archangel-Lexus Helios won for the second time this season from four starts and for the 39th time from 94 career starts, raising his earnings to $2,701,106. He paid $2.60 to win. 

A mid-race give-and-go proved the winning strategy for Pollack Racing's Ervin Hanover, who powered to a 1:46.3 score in the Grade 3 $240,143 Dave Brower Memorial for pacers.

Ervin Hanover and driver Dexter Dunn were unhurried in the race's early stages, stalking from fourth as Crack Shot (Doug McNair) and Bythemissal (Yannick Gingras) tussled through a :26.1 first quarter. Reaching the backstretch, Bythemissal yielded control to Crack Shot, and Ervin Hanover continued up to a brief lead off Crack Shot's cover before ceding control to Ken Hanover (Tim Tetrick) just past the :53.2 half.

On the far turn, Ken Hanover and Ervin Hanover continued one-two as Oakwood Ardan Ir (James MacDonald) attempted in vain to gain ground on the outside through a punishing third split to three-quarters in 1:19.4. Dunn popped the pocket with Ervin Hanover off the corner for home, and the six-year-old Captaintreacherous-Eloquent Grace entire struck the front in mid-stretch and drew off to win by two lengths. Oakwood Ardan Ir stayed on well in the breeze to save second. Coaches Corner (Jason Bartlett) lunged off that rival's cover to narrowly miss the runner-up spot.

"He's just in top form; I think he's as good as he's ever been," said trainer Dave Menary of Ervin Hanover, who recorded his first Meadowlands win after failing to convert in his first eight tries over the one-mile oval. "Hopefully his next eight starts (at the Meadowlands) are better than his last eight starts."

Now three-for-three this season after also winning an Open Pace and the Grade 3 Mohawk Gold Cup at Woodbine Mohawk Park, Ervin Hanover has won 29 of his 78 career starts and earned $1,872,067 to date.

"I think he's as sharp as he's ever been," said Menary. "We tried to start him a little later and keep the travelling down (this season) until now, and so far it's paid off."

Ervin Hanover's 1:46.3 mile knocked a fifth of a second off the previous track record for five-year-old-and-older pacing horses of 1:46.4, which Catch The Fire had set in 2022. As the 4-5 public choice, he paid $3.60 to win.

In the $218,857 Grade 3 Perfect Sting for pacing mares, Miki And Minnie sustained a long first-over grind to upend Chris Ryder stablemate and 2024 Dan Patch Horse of the Year Twin B Joe Fresh in a thrilling stretch duel and lower her lifetime mark to 1:48 amid a sudden downpour.

James MacDonald activated Miki And Minnie out of midfield up the backstretch not long after Twin B Joe Fresh (Dunn) brushed from fourth to first well after a :26.2 first quarter. Miki And Minnie, a four-year-old Always B Miki-Thats The Ticket mare, steadily ground forward to push the pace after a :53.4 half. The Ryder trainees matched strides to three-quarters in 1:21.1 and left their tiring pocket foe Prolific Fire (Doug McNair) in their wake through the stretch. Twin B Joe Fresh fought gamely, but Miki And Minnie found enough to strike the front in the final metres of a :26.4 final-quarter duel and prevail by a neck. Unreasonable (Todd McCarthy) emerged out of traffic in upper stretch and rallied to nab Louies Girl N (Jason Bartlett) for third, another 2-3/4 lengths behind.

"I didn't know what to think," said Ryder of the duel between his distaff dynamos. "Miki And Minnie always finds the wire; she's not the quickest horse, but she can go a mile. It was a great stretch battle and one had to get there first, but it didn't surprise me that Miki And Minnie got there first. They're two terrific mares; they're beautiful to have."

Now a 23-time winner from 31 starts with $3,025,249 in the bank for the partnership of Craig Henderson, Robert Mondillo and Lawrence Minowitz, Miki And Minnie has won four of five races this season, including the Grade 1 Roses Are Red. Sent off as the odds-on favourite, she paid $3 to win.

Magic Punk worked out a perfect pocket trip behind 9-5 favourite Diabolic Hill (Todd McCarthy) and went by in deep stretch to record a one-length victory in the $48,750 second colt-and-gelding division of the W.N. Reynolds Memorial for three-year-old trotters. Southwind Fargo (Ake Svanstedt) was third. A colt by Wishing Stone-I D Entity No, Magic Punk scored in a lifetime-best 1:51.4 for driver Yannick Gingras and trainer Ake Svanstedt while lifting his lifetime numbers to seven wins in 12 career starts, good for earnings of just over $506,254. The colt owned by Magic Punk Inc. paid $6.40 to win as the 2-1 second choice in the wagering.

It Could Be Worse took the $48,036 opening division for males by a length in a lifetime-best 1:50.3 for driver Tim Tetrick and trainer Linda Toscano, going all the way on the point after taking over just after the quarter. The Captain Corey-Emiliciousboomboom colt rebuffed a stiff challenge from 1-5 favourite Nix Nacken (Dexter Dunn), who rallied well from first-over after racing sixth down the backside but faltered late to third as Southwind Alamo (Jonathan Ahle) surged to get second. The winner is now three-for-11 lifetime with $295,411 in earnings for owners The Bay's Stable LLC, Pat and Mark Huber, Bill Elliott and Camelot Stable Inc. Sent to the gate as the 6-1 second choice, It Could Be Worse returned $14.20 to win.

Nezuko Kamado S won the $47,464 first division for fillies in a lifetime-best 1:52.1 for driver Scott Zeron and trainer Marcus Melander, holding off Jailbird Jog (James MacDonald) by a big nose. Leading Lady (Matt Kakaley) was third. Nezuko Kamado S, a daughter of Chapter Seven-Zefira Kronos It, cut the mile to improve to nine-for-14 lifetime and grow her bankroll to $1,003,024 for Courant Inc. The 6-5 favourite returned $4.40.

Custom took the $48,178 second female split, surging late to score by a half-length after picking up a live second-over trip for reinsman Jason Bartlett and conditioner Per Engblom. R Ro (Tyler Buter) finished second over Lainey W (Yannick Gingras). The winning daughter of Walner-Goldy Mary Fr, owned by TLH Racing Inc., is now six-for-13 lifetime with $197,256 in earnings. She returned $3.80 as the 4-5 favourite.

A carryover of $13,604 USD motivated players to bet $32,770 USD of new money into the Early 10-cent Pentafecta (Hi-5) pool, and despite the 4-5 favourite ending up on top, winning tickets with the combination of 4-1-7-6-8 were exchanged for $119.54 for a dime base wager. 

DRF Harness Editor Derick Giwner had a big night serving as co-host on the live simulcast presentation. Giwner, who is being inducted into the Communicators Hall of Fame at the Harness Racing Museum and Hall of Fame on Sunday, selected eight winners on top, which included five exactors. His highlight was picking On To Norway, who returned $9.40 to Giwner’s followers. 

All-source handle on the 11-race program totalled $2,619,583. Next week, The Meadowlands will have three live racing programs. Post time is 6:35 p.m. on Thursday, Friday and Saturday.

(With files from The Meadowlands)