The deadline for entry into the 2022 TROT Magazine Fantasy Stable is Friday, May 27 at 5:00 p.m. (EST).
To enter the 2022 TROT Magazine Fantasy Stable contest, click the following link: 2022 TROT Magazine Fantasy Stable Entry Form.
In advance of the contest deadline, Trot Insider provided previews of each category. To view the previous features examining the participants comprising the groups of horses, click the following links:
Today's feature examines the people that comprise the trainer and driver categories.
GROUP M
Tony Alagna posted career-best numbers in 2021, with personal bests in wins (212; eighth best in North America) and earnings ($8,187,510; second best in North America) along with a solid 0.348 average. His UTR is even better to start 2022, coming in at 0.438 with a 30-13-12 summary from 94 starts and $449,936 thus far and stakes season still to come.
Ake Svanstedt pulled a personal record for earnings in 2021 with $6,314,736 banked, ranking third highest on the season, from 516 starts with 104 wins. In terms of wins, his third-best year since moving his stable to the U.S. in 2014. He sported a UTR of 0.324, also his third best on North American record. From 51 starts in 2022, Svanstedt hoists an average of 0.509 with $450,422 already earned.
Richard “Nifty” Norman had his best year on record in 2021 with $6,303,666 earned, the fourth-best last season, from 659 starts and 141 wins. He capped the year with an average UTR of 0.345 and has kept his momentum rolling in 2022 with an average of 0.356 and $564,674 already earned this season.
Jenn Bongiorno nearly doubled her output in 2021 following the abbreviated season in 2020. She earned a career-best $5,084,722 in purses and scored a career-high 271 wins from a career-record 1,196 starts. Through all those races, she maintained a UTRS of 0.363 and in 2022 has already scored 100 wins from 469 starts and banked $1,717,947.
Nancy Takter had a strong year to follow with the 2021 season after posting record-setting numbers in progress to a Trainer of the Year title in the U.S. Nonetheless, Takter in 2021 had her second-best season in wins with 101 and her third-best season in earnings with $4,965,618 from 559. She hit a UTRS of 0.300 and has rolled into 2022 with force to hold a 0.474 average while holding 23 victories from 71 starts and $443,013 earned.
Brett Pelling posted his best numbers in 2021 since his return to the U.S. in 2017. He scored 105 wins from 330 starts and earned $4,593,012, good for a UTRS of 0.460. It was his eighth-best season in earnings in his 20 years in North America. Already in 2022, Pelling has struck at an average of 0.535 with 22 wins from 50 starts and $219,693 earned.
Erv Miller had another strong year in 2021 while posting his 21st-straight seven-digit earnings season. From 1,285 starts, Miller won 247 races – third best in North America – and earned $4,120,251, ranking him eighth among trainers on the season. He’s already nearing seven digits again in 2022 with $806,545 banked from 288 starts with 33 wins.
Jeff Cullipher had a personal-best year all around in 2021 with 240 wins from 1,555 starts and $4,053,850 earned, beating his previous record of 186 wins and $3,415,229 in earnings from 2019. He already has surpassed the seven-figure plateau in 2022 with $1,348,940 earned from 524 starts with 81 wins.
Marcus Melander remained a top trainer on the Grand Circuit in 2021 with his fifth-straight seven-figure season and his third-straight year with over $3,000,000 in earnings. He finished the season with 71 wins – the second best of his career – and $3,887,044 earned from 401 starts, his second-best year in purses just behind his 2019 season. His barn has been hot into 2022, firing at an average of 0.532 from 38 starts with 16 wins and $250,108 banked.
Richard Moreau remained the king of Woodbine Mohawk Park in 2021 while also collecting his ninth-straight O’Brien Award for Canada’s Trainer of the Year. In 2021, he won 236 races, ranking him fith in North America, from 1,316 starts and earned $3,706,225. He’s closing on 100 wins already in 2022 with 94 victories from 567 starts and already has $1,421,480 earned.
GROUP N
Carmen Auciello had his third-best season in earnings on record in 2021, banking $2,953,554. His 167 wins ranks seventh best in his 18-year career. Already in 2022, Auciello is approaching $2 million in earnings with $1,712,476 accrued from 748 starts, 97 of which he won, and he is striking at an average of 0.239.
Luc Blais registered his sixth-consecutive $2,000,000 season in 2021 with $2,207,331 earned from 266 all while hitting at an average of 0.305 and winning 44 races. He approaches stakes season in 2022 having 38 starts and five wins with $97,374 earned and an average of 0.254.
Nick Gallucci recorded his best season of his 11-year career in 2021 with $2,142,347 earned from 203 starts and 63 wins. All through that, the Millar Farms conditioner batted a 0.432 average and has hit 2022 with fury to strike at a UTRS of 0.517 from 32 starts already this year – 10 of which he won – while banking $214,278 in purses.
Ben Baillargeon had his 17th-straight seven-figure season in 2021 with $1,963,810 earned from 515 starts, of which he won 82 and struck at a UTRS of 0.270. From 206 starts so far in 2022, he has won 21 times and earned $532,418 while registering a UTRS of 0.235.
Dr. Ian Moore posted his eighth seven-figure season in 2021 with $1,697,235 in purses, the third best year he’s had for earnings. He won 38 races from 246 starts and batted a UTRS of 0.293. From just 14 starts so far this year, he has started strong to hit at an average of 0.428 with four wins and $126,424 in purses.
Rob Fellows notched back-to-back million-dollar seasons in 2021 while having his fourth-best year ever in purse earnings, banking $1,479,223 from 440 starts. He won 58 of those races and held a UTRS of 0.250. In 2022, he has started 161 times with 23 wins and a UTRS of 0.220, all while accruing $269,076 in purses.
Gregg McNair continued his streak of seven-figure seasons which he began in 1996. In 2021, McNair banked $1,451,861 from 393 starts, winning 57 and hitting an average of 0.279. His stable already is finding success in 2022 with his UTRS sitting a 0.359 from 124 starts with 26 wins and $502,708 in purses.
Blake MacIntosh had his fifth-straight million-dollar season after posting his first in 2017. In 2021, he won 76 races from 712 starts and collected $1,205,485 in purses while holding a UTRS of 0.210. He’s hitting at a higher average already in 2022 with a 0.314 UTRS – the highest of his career – from 120 starts; he has won 19 races and earned $246,377 in purses.
John Bax posted his first million-dollar season last year since 2015. In 2021, he started 174 times and won 17 races while accruing $1,173,941 in purses and hitting a UTRS of 0.213. His average remains strong into 2022 with a UTRS of 0.254 from 34 starts, four of which were wins, and $85,782 in purses earned.
Jeff Gillis had his 11th million-dollar season in 2021 with $1,052,112 banked from 273 starts with 47 wins and a UTRS of 0.289. But coming off of May in 2022, Gillis is on track to beat his 2021 year having earned $1,030,639 already this season from 179 starts with 35 wins and a UTRS of 0.329.
GROUP O
Dexter Dunn led all drivers in earnings in North America in 2021 with $13,139,664 earned from 2,199 starts – a personal record for the New Zealand native since he relocated to the U.S. in 2018. He scored 425 victories, his second best just behind his 2019 season with 460 wins, and finished with a UDRS of 0.319. From 416 starts so far this season, he has won 70 times, holds a UDRS of 0.293 and has earned $1,409,587.
Tim Tetrick finished second in the North American dash title in 2021 with 658 victories. He also finished second on the continent in earnings with $13,058,550 earned from 2,855 starts, all while batting an average of 0.366. He has kept his momentum rolling in 2022 with a UDRS of 0.348 from 980 starts, 202 of which he won, and $2,719,105 in purses.
Yannick Gingras had his 11th eight-figure season in 2021, accruing $11,367,782 in purses from 1,821 starts. He won 315 times and finished with an average of 0.308, which he already is beating into 2022 as his UDRS currently rests at 0.326. He has banked $2,155,624 from 621 starts this season, winning 115.
David Miller posted his 17th $10-million season in 2021 with $10,959,925 banked from 2,231 starts. He won on 391 occasions and completed the season with a UDRS of 0.311. He remains on a strong average in 2022 with a UDRS of 0.303 from 780 starts and $1,376,636 earned, including 123 wins.
Andy McCarthy had a career year in 2021 across the board. He finished with his highest average ever of 0.304, recorded his most victories for a single season with 315 and bested his single-season earnings record with $8,883,266 in purses. Already in 2022, he has won 77 races from 463 starts, maintains an average of 0.284 and has earned $1,014,795.
GROUP P
Scott Zeron stayed steady on the Grand Circuit to record another strong season in 2021, banking $8,755,617 from 2,336 starts and winning on 246 occasions while holding a UDRS of 0.225. He has come into 2022 batting at an average 0.198 while earning $1,640,347 from 753 starts and winning 65.
Jason Bartlett continued his steady success in 2021 with $8,657,962 earned from 2,963 starts, including 453 wins and a UDRS of 0.276. With just about half the year to go in 2022, he has already banked about half of his 2021 earnings, having accrued $4,332,437 in purses from 1,035 starts while holding a heightened average of 0.363 and 225 wins on the year.
Aaron Merriman collected another dash title in 2021, leading all North American drivers in wins on the season with 860 from 4,397 starts. He earned $8,193,441 and struck at an average of 0.334. He continues into 2022 with an average of 0.371 while having already won 327 races from 1,525 starts and earning $2,729,922.
Todd McCarthy made a name for himself among North America’s top drivers in 2021, earning $7,565,122 from 2,225 starts and winning 337 races in just his first full season in the U.S and in progress to winning USHWA’s Rising Star Award. He holds 88 wins from 542 starts into 2022 with $1,176,055 earned and a UDRS of 0.275.
Matt Kakaley nabbed 384 wins from 2,814 starts in 2021 while hitting at an average of 0.276 and earning $7,375,502 in purses. In 2022, he’s currently outperforming his previous season with a UDRS of 0.316 while having banked $3,504,695 from 1,106 starts and winning 203.
GROUP Q
James MacDonald had a career year in 2021 that saw him easily clinch the O’Brien Award for Driver of the Year. He collected $7,542,277 in purses from 1,671 starts with a UDRS of 0.317 and winning on 322 occasions, which ranks as his second-best season in wins behind his 335-win season in 2014. He has already won 151 times from 693 starts in 2022 and earned $2,558,934, all while clicking a UDRS of 0.345.
Doug McNair remains one of the most called-upon drivers at Woodbine Mohawk Park while also continuing his success in 2021. He accrued $5,461,516 in earnings from 1,644 starts and won 272 races and hitting a UDRS of 0.294. In 2022, his average has strengthened to 0.323 from 592 starts with 110 wins and $1,852,574 in purses.
Sylvain Filion enjoyed another successful season in 2021 that led to a nomination for the O’Brien Driver of the Year. He won 233 from 1,474 starts, held a UDRS of 0.278 and earned $5,399,774 in purses. He has already won 76 races from 623 starts in 2022 and holds a UDRS of 0.232 while having earned $1,407,469 in purses.
Bob McClure had his 2021 cut short in November when he was involved in an accident that sidelined him until the end of January. Nonetheless, he finished the year with a UDRS of 0.273 from 1,215 starts while winning 185 races and earning $4,647,815 in purses. He has returned in 2022 with a UDRS of 0.242, 55 wins from 442 starts and earnings of $1,010,165.
Louis-Philippe Roy had just his sixth million-dollar season from his 14-year career. In 2021, he earned $4,484,275 from 1,443 starts, winning on 224 occasions and holding a UDRS of 0.270. He’s already nabbed 101 victories in 2022 from 608 starts and banked $1,670,680 in purses while racing at an average of 0.277.
GROUP R
Trevor Henry completed his 20th consecutive million-dollar season in 2021 with $4,282,910 in earnings from 1,309 starts, winning 168 times and clicking a UDRS of 0.235. From 529 starts so far in 2022, he has won 63 times, holds an average of 0.250 and has earned $1,348,762.
Jody Jamieson had another $4-million season in 2021 – his seventh straight – with $4,068,319 earned from 1,413 starts, including 194 wins and a UDRS of 0.243. In 2022, he has won 45 times from 472 starts, earning $983,763 and registered a UDRS of 0.207.
Colin Kelly was shy of a career year last season by just a few thousand dollars, though he posted his best year yet in wins with 278 victories from 1,457 starts while earning $1,799,883 in purses and hitting at an average of 0.321. He has already earned $734,465 from 560 starts in 2022, won 91 times and holds a UDRS of 0.297.
Brett MacDonald just slightly eclipsed his best year in earnings last season with $1,782,382 earned from 1,819 starts, including 247 wins. He’s already nearing the million-dollar mark in 2022 with $971,184 earned from 855 starts, including 122 wins and a UDRS of 0.268.
Austin Sorrie, Canada’s 2020 Rising Star, well surpassed his personal bests in 2021 to have another record season, winning 215 races from 1,478 starts and earning $1,725,882 with a UDRS of 0.272. He’s already earned $937,398 about halfway through 2022 while winning 65 races from 648 starts and batting at an average of 0.194.