The connections of 17 three-year-old female trotters have entered their charges to contest the $500,000 Hambletonian Oaks, the filly division of the Hambletonian.
‘Hambletonian Festival Week’ will kick off on July 28 with two $50,000 eliminations to narrow the field to 10 for the $500,000 Oaks final, which will be contested on Hambletonian Day (Saturday, August 4) at the Meadowlands Racetrack, in East Rutherford, NJ.
The recent battle between Dan Patch Award winner Manchego and rival Plunge Blue Chip in a division of the Del Miller Memorial at the Meadowlands resulted in a near dead-heat with Plunge Blue Chip emerging a nostril ahead in a world-record 1:49.4.
The two fillies were seeded into different Oaks eliminations, with Plunge Blue Chip receiving Post 8 in one and Manchego receiving Post 7 in the other. The other Del Miller Memorial winner, Phaetosive, will start inside of Plunge Blue Chip, in Post 5, in their elimination.
Manchego has lost just two of 17 career starts – she broke while competing against males in the Beal Memorial final on June 30, and tasted defeat in the aforementioned nose loss to Plunge Blue Chip. Her career earnings stand at $961,170 for trainer Jimmy Takter and owners Black Horse Racing, John Fielding and Herb Liverman.
Plunge Blue Chip, driven and trained by Ake Svanstedt, has a record of 5-3-2-0 in 2018 for an ownership comprised of Svanstedt Stable, Blue Chip Bloodstock, Zeron Racing Stables and Tomas Andersson. Her only losses this year have come in meetings with Atlanta, the top filly in the division, whose connections opted to race the males in the $1 million Hambletonian Open. The daughter of Muscle Mass-Dunk The Donut became the fastest three-year-old of any gender with her recent 1:49.4 score.
For the first time this year, Plunge Blue Chip will face Phaetosive, who is driven and trained by Trond Smedshammer and is owned by the Purple Haze Stables. The daughter of Explosive Matter-Phaeton was a $65,000 purchase at the Standardbred Horse Sale in 2016 and has earned her connections $352,358 in just 10 lifetime starts.
The Oaks elimination fields appear below.
$50,000 Oaks Elim for Saturday, July 28
(Post Position – Horse – Trainer – Listed Driver)
1 – Blonde Magic – Thomas Durand – Thomas Durand
2 – Lima Novelty – Linda Toscano – Scott Zeron
3 – Winbak Noelle – Lucas Wallin – Andrew McCarthy
4 – Perfect Summer K – Andrew Harris – Louis-Philippe Roy
5 – Phaetosive – Trond Smedshammer – Trond Smedshammer
6 – Live Laugh Love – R. Nifty Norman – David Miller
7 – Nixie Volo – John Butenschoen – Corey Callahan
8 – Plunge Blue Chip – Ake Svanstedt – Ake Svanstedt
$50,000 Oaks Elim for Saturday, July 28
(Post Position – Horse – Trainer – Listed Driver)
1 – What A Knockout – Marcus Melander – David Miller
2 – Bills Lady – John Butenschoen – Corey Callahan
3 – Lily Stride – Mark Harder – Tim Tetrick
4 – Hey Blondie – Chuck Sylvester – Andrew McCarthy
5 – Fly Fly Selena – Dustin Jones – Brett Miller
6 – Courtney Hanover – Rick Zeron – Scott Zeron
7 – Manchego – Jimmy Takter – Yannick Gingras
8 – Piranha Fury – R. Nifty Norman – Tim Tetrick
9 – Seviyorum – Julie Miller – Andy Miller
The top five finishers in each elim will advance to the final on August 4. There is no lasix or any race-day medication permitted in the eliminations or finals of the Hambletonian Oaks or Open. Elimination winners draw for inside Posts 1-5 and all other finalists will then be placed in an open draw. The winner of the final on August 4 is the Oaks winner, regardless of elimination finish on July 28.
Post positions for the $500,000 final will be drawn and morning lines assigned on Tuesday, July 31 during a ‘Facebook live’ post-position draw at 2 p.m. on the Meadowlands Facebook page and also streamed live on the Meadowlands YouTube channel.
The $500,000 Hambletonian Oaks and $1 million Hambletonian will be featured on a live 90-minute broadcast on CBS Sports Network from 4 - 5:30 p.m. (EDT) on August 4.
Hambletonian Day is the Meadowlands’ closing day. It will feature a post time of 12:00 noon.
Earlier in the day, the Meadowlands announced that the Jim Doherty Memorial attracted 19 fillies, therefore eliminations will be contested this Friday (July 27). The $357,450 final will be contested on Hambletonian Day.
Additionally, the Peter Haughton Memorial two-year-old colt trot attracted 10 declarations, and therefore eliminations will not be required. The 10 horses will head directly to the $422,350 final, which will also be contested on Hambletonian Day.
The fields for the Jim Doherty and the Peter Haughton appear below.
Jim Doherty Field
Beautiful Sin
Bushy Tails
Devilish Delight
Fate Smiled
French Cafe
Given
Hanna Dreamgirl
Hanovers Best
Jezzys Legacy
Miss You Kelly
Mother Bonnie
Rush Lane
Special Honor
Speed Titan
Starita
Susy
Swizzle Sticks
The Ice Dutchess
Whispering Oaks
Peter Haughton Field
Dont Letem
Gerry
Green Manalishi S
Greenshoe
Hudson River
Kredit Karma
Marseille
Mass Fortune K
Trix And Stones
White Tiger
(With files from the Hambletonian Society and the Meadowlands Racetrack)