The Meadowlands’ September ‘mini meet’ is now a tad smaller as tonight’s (Thursday, Sept. 8) race card was cancelled late last week, but that will only serve to strengthen the programs that will take place this Friday (Sept. 9) and Saturday (Sept. 10). Post time is 6:20 p.m.
The New Jersey Classic Series (NJCS), the brainchild of Big M President and Chief Executive Officer Jeff Gural, will be on display Friday. The “A” level final for three-year-old trotting colts and geldings sports a purse of $275,000 and stars Beal winner – and Hambletonian third-place finisher – Temporal Hanover, a Marcus Melander trainee who has hit the board in all eight of his 2022 starts, winning half.
In addition, the $275,000 NJCS “A” final for three-year-old trotting fillies is on the card, and that race features Hambletonian Oaks champion Fashion Schooner, who’s won six of nine this season, including the $240,000 New Jersey Sire Stakes final.
Horses of a somewhat lower caliber still get to go for good green in the NJCS “B” level three-year-old trotting events. The division for fillies and for colts and geldings will both go for a pot of $100,000.
Betting figures to be big at The Big M this weekend, with plenty of full competitive fields and 14 races both nights.
Twenty-cent Pick-6 bettors will be looking forward to when racing resumes, as there were no winning tickets sold on the bet last Saturday, creating a carryover of $4,091.80. The Pick-6 will be offered beginning in race eight Friday night.
There will also be the usual two 50-cent Pick-4s that will sport guaranteed pools of $50,000. Those bets will begin in races six and 10, respectively.
Free past performances for every race of every Meadowlands card are available at playmeadowlands.com.
When this weekend’s action has concluded, racing at The Meadowlands will have one more week of live action (Sept. 16-17) before taking a six-week break. That’s when Monmouth will conduct Thoroughbred turf racing over the Big M’s seven-eighths-mile grass course.
(With files from The Meadowlands)