A record 194 horses were entered on Tuesday for the $7 million USD Breeders Crown at The Meadowlands, topping the previous high of 185 set last year at Harrah’s Hoosier Park.
Metro Pace champion Fallout, ranked No. 10 in the Hambletonian Society/Breeders Crown poll, will lead the way on Friday afternoon, Oct. 18 when The Meadowlands hosts nine $25,000 USD Breeders Crown eliminations for two-year-old pacers and trotters. First-race post time on Friday is 12:30 p.m. (EDT).
Fallout will be among 72 freshmen competing in elims on Friday. Two other two-year-olds, male trotter Maryland and female trotter Champagne Problems, will advance directly to their event’s finals thanks to their wins in last month’s Peter Haughton Memorial and Jim Doherty Memorial, respectively. Maryland is ranked No. 7 in the sport’s Top 10 poll.
All two-year-old Breeders Crown finals will be on Oct. 25 at The Big M. Elimination winners as well as Maryland and Champagne Problems, in an order determined by lot, will draw for post positions one through six in their respective finals. All other finalists will be placed in an open draw for the remaining post positions.
Sixteen two-year-old male pacers were entered in the Breeders Crown, requiring two eliminations. The top five finishers from each elim will advance to the final.
Fallout, the sport’s richest freshman male pacer with $658,553 in purses for trainer Tony Alagna, will leave from post six in the second elimination. The son of Captaintreacherous-Aria Hanover brings a three-race win streak to his elim and has won four of nine races overall.
Among the remaining male pacers competing in Friday’s elims are Ohio Sire Stakes champion Sippinonsearoc and Kentucky Sire Stakes champion Louprint, both trained by Ron Burke. They rank second and third, respectively, in earnings for two-year-old male pacers. Sippinonsearoc is the fastest two-year-old in history, with a mark of 1:48.2. They meet in the first elimination.
There also will be two elims for the two-year-old male trotters, with 16 horses in action as they look to join Maryland in the final. The top four finishers from each elim plus the fifth-place finisher with the highest earnings will advance to the final.
That group includes Grand Circuit and Kentucky Sire Stakes winner Super Chapter and Pennsylvania Sire Stakes champion Meshuggah, who like Maryland are trained by Marcus Melander. Also in the mix is Grand Circuit winner Memento Mori, an Eric Patalan trainee whose 1:51.4 mark is tied for the season’s best by a freshman trotter. Meshuggah and Memento Mori are in the first elim, Super Chapter in the second.
There will be three eliminations for two-year-old female trotters, with 23 fillies in action on Friday as they attempt to join Nancy Takter-trained Champagne Problems in the final. The top three finishers from each elim will advance to the final.
Among the hopefuls are Grand Circuit winners Aperfect Annie, R Dutchess, Royal Mission and Sound Judgement. Aperfect Annie, trained by Carter Pinske, also counts the Kentucky Sire Stakes championship among her wins while Melander-trained Royal Mission is the New York Sire Stakes champ.
Jim Oscarsson-trained Sound Judgement and John Butenschoen-trained R Dutchess are among the season’s fastest rookie female trotters, right behind 1:51.4 performer Luna Lovegood, another Melander trainee.
Seventeen two-year-old female pacers were entered in the Breeders Crown, resulting in two eliminations. The top five finishers from each elim will advance to the final.
Jared Bako will send out two of this season’s highest money-winning freshman fillies, New York Sire Stakes champion and Shes A Great Lady runner-up The Last Martini and NYSS runner-up Cowgirl Hanover. The duo has combined for more than $967,000 in purses.
Burke has a trio of Grand Circuit winners in Rose, Looksgoodinloulou and Rodeo Drive Deo. Looksgoodinloulou has a mark of 1:48.3, tied for the fastest in history by a two-year-old female pacer while Rose also has the Pennsylvania Sire Stakes title to her credit. Chris Ryder-trained Miki And Minnie is a Grand Circuit winner and Kentucky Sire Stakes champion.
Cowgirl Hanover, Looksgoodinloulou, Rodeo Drive Deo and Miki And Minnie are in the first elim. Rose and The Last Martini are in the second.
Harness racing’s No. 1-ranked horse, Twin B Joe Fresh, will start her pursuit of a Breeders Crown from post 10 when she competes in Saturday’s lone Mare Pace elimination at The Meadowlands. First-race post time on Saturday is 6:20 p.m. (EDT).
Twin B Joe Fresh will be among the 98 horses ages three and up competing in elims on Saturday. In addition to the single Mare Pace elimination, The Meadowlands will host two $25,000 USD elims each for three-year-old male and female pacers, three-year-old male and female trotters, and older male pacers. The Open Trot and Open Mare Trot went straight to finals.
All finals for horses ages three and up will be on Oct. 26 at The Meadowlands, one night after the two-year-olds take center stage. Elimination winners, in an order determined by lot, will draw for post positions one through six in their respective finals. All other finalists will be placed in an open draw for the remaining post positions.
The top eight finishers in the Breeders Crown Mare Pace elimination will join bye recipients Silver Label and Strong Poison in the final. In Saturday’s remaining elims, the top five finishers from each will advance to their respective finals.
Twin B Joe Fresh has won nine consecutive starts for trainer Chris Ryder since beginning her season with a second-place finish against male rivals in a conditioned race. Her victories include the Dayton Distaff Derby, Roses Are Red Stakes, Milton Stakes, Lady Liberty, Dorothy Haughton Memorial and Perfect Sting Stakes. She has spent 14 consecutive weeks at No. 1 in the Hambletonian Society/Breeders Crown poll.
Among the remaining mares in the elim is two-time Breeders Crown champion Sylvia Hanover, the reigning Horse of the Year from the stable of Mark and Shawn Steacy. She will leave from post four.
The eliminations for three-year-old male pacers feature Little Brown Jug, Adios and Max C. Hempt Memorial winner Captain Albano, trained by Noel Daley and ranked No. 4 in the Top 10 poll, and North America Cup and Ontario Sires Stakes Super Final champion Nijinsky, trained by Anthony Beaton and ranked No. 6. The group also includes returning Breeders Crown champ Gem Quality, another Ryder trainee.
Captain Albano is in the first elimination, Nijinsky and Gem Quality in the second.
Hambletonian champion Karl, also a returning Breeders Crown winner, leads a group of 17 horses in the elims for three-year-old male trotters. The Nancy Takter trainee is ranked No. 5 in the Top 10.
Among other hopefuls are Daley-trained Kentucky Futurity and Earl Beal Jr. Memorial winner Sig Sauer, Ake Svanstedt-trained Canadian Trotting Classic winner Amazing Catch and Mark Etsell-trained Goodtimes winner Highland Kismet. Sig Sauer is ranked No. 8 in the Top 10.
Karl and Highland Kismet are in the second elimination, Sig Sauer and Amazing Catch in the first.
Returning Breeders Crown winner and Hambletonian Oaks champ Warrawee Michelle, trained by Svanstedt, is among the 20 horses in the elims for three-year-old female trotters. The group features 12 Grand Circuit stakes winners, including Svanstedt-trained Elegantimage winner French Champagne, John Butenschoen-trained Kentucky Filly Futurity champ R Melina and Lucas Wallin-trained 2023 Dan Patch Award recipient Soiree Hanover.
Warrawee Michelle, Soiree Hanover and R Melina meet in the second elim. French Champagne is in the first.
Eighteen fillies were entered in the event for three-year-old female pacers, including returning Breeders Crown winner My Girl EJ, trained by Ron Burke. The group also includes fellow multiple Grand Circuit stakes winners Caviart Belle, trained by Takter; Its A Love Thing, trained by Dave Menary; and Rocket Deo, trained by Brett Pelling. Its A Love Thing’s victories include the Fan Hanover Stakes.
My Girl EJ is in the first elimination. Caviart Belle, Its A Love Thing and Rocket Deo meet in the second.
Returning Breeders Crown champ Bythemissal, another Burke trainee, is among 17 horses in the Open Pace. The group also includes Andrew Harris-trained multiple Grand Circuit stakes winner Abuckabett Hanover, Linda Toscano-trained Canadian Pacing Derby winner Its My Show and Larry Stalbaum-trained Sam McKee Memorial winner Rocknroll Runa A.
Bythemissal and Its My Show are in the first elim, Abuckabett Hanover and Rocknroll Runa A are in the second.
All three-year-old finals plus the Open Pace and Open Trot finals will go for $600,000 USD. The Mare Trot final will have a purse of $496,000 USD because of two supplements and the Mare Pace final will go for $400,000 USD.
Click on the following links for complete Breeders Crown elimination entries: Friday Entries // Saturday Entries.
(With files from Breeders Crown)