Harrah’s Hoosier Park concluded the 26th season of live harness racing with a 13-race card in front of a packed house on Saturday, Nov. 9. In addition to the racing action, the leading driver and trainer titles were awarded.
On the driving side, Trace Tetrick secured his sixth-consecutive driver title at Hoosier Park (his eighth overall). Tetrick, who is also currently the fourth-leading driver in the country by wins, was officially recognized as the 2019 leading driver with 328 victories while amassing over $4.4 million in purse earnings throughout the 160-day season. Sam Widger finished second with 303 victories with John DeLong in third with 256 trips to the winner’s circle.
The Southern Illinois native started driving in 2003 and has since surpassed the $55-million mark in purse earnings in the bike. As the all-time leading driver in Hoosier Park history, Tetrick recorded his best season to date in 2017 with over $6.8 million in purse earnings and 569 victories. This season, Tetrick recorded his 5,000th career victory earlier in the year and also posted his fourth consecutive season with earnings over the $5-million mark.
“I want to thank the owners, trainers, and grooms who put me in the position where I can do well every night,” Tetrick said in the winner’s circle. “I’m always focusing on one race at a time and my goal is to win that race. I’ve had great horses to drive all season and have been lucky to be in the right spots at the right time. I am going to take a few weeks off and take a little vacation before getting back to work at the first of the year and of course, look forward to being ready to go back here in March.
“The support of my family and friends has been great,” Tetrick also said. “My wife Sandy and I are extremely lucky—we welcomed our daughter Chloe this year—and we are surrounded by a lot of great people.”
Jeff Cullipher, who took home Hoosier Park’s top training honours in 2017 and 2018, was officially recognized as the leading trainer of the 2019 season. The Cullipher Stable had an impressive 108 wins and amassed over $1.7 million in purse earnings throughout the season. Peter Redder finished second in the leading trainer standings with 62 wins while Jamie Macomber finished third with 61.
After recording his first million-dollar season as a trainer in 2017 with his stable netting over $1.2 million in purse earnings and 102 victories, Cullipher has not looked back. In 2019, the Henderson, KY native has doubled his stats from the past two seasons and is towards the tail of his best season to date. Cullipher has sent 167 winners and surpassed the $3 million mark in purse earnings this season.
“I have to thank the people around me,” Cullipher said. “My family, the owners, and all of my employees have gotten me to this point. My owner—Tom Pollack—keeps me sharp and has always keeps fresh horses in the barn. There is no off-season, we will continue to work hard and hopefully improve off of this season next year.”
The Saturday night program wrapped up an extremely successful season at Hoosier Park Racing & Casino. Harrah’s Hoosier Park Racing & Casino would like to thank all of the fans, bettors and horsemen who helped make the 2019 season at Hoosier Park an overwhelming success.
“As we bring down the curtain on the 26th season of harness racing at Harrah’s Hoosier Park I would be remiss if I didn’t take a moment and thank everyone who contributed to another amazing race meet,” said Harrah’s Hoosier Park Vice President and General Manager of Racing Rick Moore. “And a special thanks to our horsemen for putting on a show each and every night that we were proud to send out to over 500 wagering outlets. As I say repeatedly the racing at Harrah’s Hoosier Park is as good as you will find in all of North America.”
“Best wishes to all as we head into the off-season,” Moore also said. “We are already looking forward to 2020 and in particular the return of the coveted Breeders Crown!”
(Harrah's Hoosier Park)