Two weeks ago, a national television audience was introduced to Karl, the current early favourite to capture the 99th edition of the $1-million USD Hambletonian on Saturday, Aug. 3 at The Meadowlands.
On Friday, May 31, Big M fans will be able to head to the track and see the colt trotting sensation look for his third victory in as many seasonal tries as he goes for a three-race sweep of the New Jersey Sire Stakes for three-year-old males in the event’s $240,000 USD final.
There is also a $240,000 USD final for sophomore filly trotters on the card.
Karl has had no problems while beating his foes by a cumulative 10-3/4 lengths in his first two outings of the year. In both starts, he paid $2.10 to win after trotting his miles in 1:53.2 and 1:52.2, respectively.
“He’s doing great,” said Karl’s trainer, Nancy Takter, the unanimous choice for Dan Patch Trainer of the Year in 2020. “I trained him [Tuesday] and he was super. He’s a very happy horse.
“He’s got a little bit of a break until late June [after the Sire Stakes]. We will only race at The Meadowlands until the Hambletonian. I may have to qualify him, but we’ll play that by ear.”
The millionaire son of Tactical Landing-Avalicious will be going after his 12th win from 13 lifetime starts on Friday night.
“Karl certainly is the one to beat this weekend when The Meadowlands presents the New Jersey Sire Stakes,” said Jason Settlemoir, Meadowlands' Chief Operating Officer and General Manager. “The entire nation got to meet the leggy sophomore two weeks ago when he dominated his division rivals on America’s Day at The Races, which was shown on FOX Sports 2. And all of harness racing will be watching him as Hambletonian Day draws ever closer.”
The following are the fields for the two New Jersey Sire Stakes finals for three-year-olds at The Meadowlands this Friday night, with post position, horse, driver, trainer and morning-line odds:
New Jersey Sire Stakes Final - Three-Year-Old Filly Trot (Race 8)
Post – Horse – Driver – Trainer – Morning Line
1. Glamorous Hanover – Todd McCarthy – Tony Alagna – 10-1
2. Miss I La – Joe Bongiorno – Noel Daley – 12-1
3. Spy Coast – Yannick Gingras – Ron Burke – 5-2
4. French Champagne – Tim Tetrick – Ake Svanstedt – 6-1
5. Local Honey – Brett Beckwith – Tony Alagna – 5-1
6. Tove Palema – Andy Miller – Julie Miller – 12-1
7. Volcanic Blue Chip – Ake Svanstedt – Ake Svanstedt – 8-1
8. Buy A Round – Andrew McCarthy – Noel Daley – 3-1
9. Allegiant – Scott Zeron – Vernon Beachy – 9-2
10. Kinesiology – Dexter Dunn – Ron Burke – 15-1
New Jersey Sire Stakes Final - Three-Year-Old Colt Trot (Race 10)
Post – Horse – Driver – Trainer – Morning Line
1. Benny J – Andrew McCarthy – Tony Alagna – 20-1
2. Tony Adams S – Dexter Dunn – Ake Svanstedt – 4-1
3. Caballero – Trond Smedshammer – Trond Smedshammer – 15-1
4. Bright Star – Scott Zeron – Tony Alagna – 12-1
5. Pantoran – Ake Svanstedt – Ake Svanstedt – 15-1
6. Waterfall – Brett Beckwith – Tony Alagna – 8-1
7. Karl – Yannick Gingras – Nancy Takter – 1-5
8. Mars Hill – Todd McCarthy – Tony Alagna – 6-1
9. Southwind Metric – Sarah Svanstedt – Ake Svanstedt – 20-1
10. Duke Of Walner – Tim Tetrick – Lucas Wallin – 25-1
The Meadowlands’ fifth annual Sportscasters Charity Derby also takes place on Friday and features two harness races to benefit charitable organizations selected by area sportscasters. Each sportscaster will be teamed up with a Meadowlands driver in a jog cart and will compete against other sportscasters in a field of four in a one-mile race.
Meadowlands Racing & Entertainment will donate $5,000 USD to each of the two winning sportscasters’ selected charities in addition to making a $1,000 USD donation to each charity selected by each sportscaster.
There are three new faces in the 2024 edition of The Derby: Chris Lopresti, Chelsea Sherrod and Perry Sook. The participants, media affiliation and charity are listed below.
Sportscasters Charity Derby (After Race 3)
1. Chris Lopresti (WFAN-660 AM, CBS Sports Radio, SiriusXM) - St. Barnabus Hospital Health System
2. Don LaGreca (ESPN-NY 98.7 FM) - Ronald McDonald House
3. Chelsea Sherrod (SNY) - Grow Our Game
4. Mark Cannizzaro (NY Post) - Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center
Sportscasters Charity Derby (After Race 5)
1. Maria Marino (Action Network) - American Cancer Society/Making Strides Against Breast Cancer
2. Marc Malusis (PIX11, SNY, WFAN) - Make-A-Wish Foundation
3. Perry Sook (PIX11) - St. Barnabus Hospital Health System
4. Keith Irizarry (MLB Network) - Cavan McGovern Family Research Fund
The sixth annual running of the Meadowlands Racetrack Wiener Dog Derby takes place on Saturday, June 1. This event is free to attend.
There will be 10 wiener dogs in the final. Qualifiers will be run in-between the live harness races. The final will be held once all qualifiers are complete. There is $1,500 USD in total prize money up for grabs, with qualifier winners earning a $100 USD betting voucher. The winner of the final gets a $500 USD betting voucher.
Only dogs permitted in the track and in each race are Dachshunds. All canines must be currently licensed and up to date on all shots, including rabies vaccination. Only canines registered to participate are allowed at the track. No canine “viewers.”
Approximate Wiener Dog Derby post times are: Race 1, 6 p.m.; Race 2, 6:15 p.m.; Race 3, 6:32 p.m.; Race 4, 6:52 p.m.; Race 5, 7:30 p.m.; Race 6, 8 p.m.; Race 7, 8:25 p.m.; Race 8, 8:50 p.m.; Race 9, 9:15 p.m.; Race 10, 9:40 p.m.; Final, 10 p.m.
The track’s HorsePlay giveaway takes place every race day until Friday, Aug. 2, with a brand new 2024 Toyota Camry LE AWD as the grand prize. The HorsePlay giveaway is sponsored by Purple Haze Stables.
The Meadowlands Summer Survival Challenge, powered by 123Racing, kicked off on Friday, May 3 and continues as well. Cash prizes and Meadowlands swag are up for grabs in this free online contest. The game covers the Meadowlands Championship Meet and will conclude on Saturday, Aug. 3.
“The Meadowlands is a great summer place, a beautiful safe and secure venue where you can relax, have fun and be entertained while enjoying live racing every Friday and Saturday,” said Settlemoir.
Ten local New Jersey charitable organizations were selected to compete in the Meadowlands Charity Handicapping Contest last Saturday, May 25. The top five finishers were Pacing for the Cure ($78.80), ACT Now Foundation ($54.50), North Jersey Friendship House ($50.10), Special Strides ($49.60) and Fighting H.A.R.D. Foundation ($46.30).
The contest offered a $15,000 USD total donation/prize pool, with every charity receiving a donation including first place awarded $5,000 USD. All who attended the races on behalf of the charities had a night of fun, and all 10 charities had their cheques given to them while getting their pictures taken in the winner’s circle.
Live racing takes place every Friday and Saturday at The Meadowlands with a first-race post time of 6:20 p.m. The Big M’s live “Racing from The Meadowlands” pre-game show begins every live racing night at 5:45 p.m. with The Big M TV team of Dave Little and Jessica Otten providing news, notes and selections from the Sam McKee Memorial Broadcast Set. With Ken Warkentin away on holiday, Gabe Prewitt of The Red Mile will be calling the races this Friday and Saturday night.
(With files from Meadowlands Racetrack)