The Meadowlands hosted a harness racing qualifying card filled with major stakes contenders and champions on Apr. 17, including Little Brown Jug and Breeders Crown winners.
The second qualifier saw four $100,000+ earning sophomore trotting fillies go for their spin, including Pennsylvania Sires Stakes winner Insta Glam. Love Muffin (Andy Miller) went wire-to-wire in 1:55.4. Presto (Sarah Svanstedt) sat the three-hole and split horses late for second. Avenir (Yannick Gingras) finished third after a pocket ride, and Insta Glam (Dexter Dunn) went first-up around the turn and finished fourth. Illuminata (Ake Svanstedt) broke in the late stages.
LOVE MUFFIN REPLAY
Matron Winner Type A (Gingras) headlined the third qualifier for three-year-old colt and gelding trotters, and he brushed and crushed to win by three-quarters of a length in 1:58.2. Zenith Stride (Brian Sears), another stakes winner, put in a :28.1 final quarter to take second. Ambasssador Hanover (Ake Svanstedt), a New York Sires Stakes contender, rode the pocket and got third. Valedictory winner Bee Forever (Victor Kirby) was fifth and well behind the leading four.
TYPE A REPLAY
Liberty Bell winner Lepanto (Ake Svansdedt) finished sixth in 1:57.3 in the fourth qualifier for three-year-old male trotters. Locatelli (Gingras), the place finisher in last season’s New Jersey Sires Stakes two-year-old trotting colt final, went first-up to nab third. Rattle My Cage (Tim Tetrick) won it in 1:56.1.
RATTLE MY CAGE REPLAY
The open trot in the fifth was unquestionably the highlight of the card; every horse in it made more than $100,000, including Canadian Trotting Classic, Beal Memorial, Hambletonian Maturity, Cashman, and Pennsylvania Sires Stakes champion Crystal Fashion.
Beads (Sears), the 2020 Kentucky Sires Stakes three-year-old colt trot final winner, went all the way, much like he did in the KYSS win. Play Trix On Me (Scott Zeron), a multiple stakes winner and place finisher in the Breeders Crown final, rode the pocket and took second. Crystal Fashion (Jordan Stratton) trotted well and held off Hambletonian Oaks winner Sorella (Gingras) to finish third. Sermon (Kasper Foget) and Smart As Hill (Tetrick) were fifth and sixth, respectively. The qualifier went in 1:54.2.
BEADS REPLAY
Peaky Sneaky (Zeron), winner of the 2020 Breeders Crown Final for three-year-old pacing fillies, went first up in the sixth qualifier for three and four-year-old females to win in 1:54.2. Sires stakes performers Thebeachiscalling (Andrew McCarthy) and Podium Girl (Patrick Ryder) finished second and third, respectively.
PEAKY SNEAKY REPLAY
Pennsylvania Sires Stakes winner Grace Hill (Dunn) worked for her win in the seventh for three-year-old pacing fillies and mares. She put Dresden (Ryder) in the pocket going into the first turn and battled with Jk First Lady (McCarthy), the 2019 Three Diamonds winner, down the stretch in a 1:54.1 effort. Jk First Lady was second, and Dresden held third. Champlain Stakes winner Caviart Audrey (Gingras) was a quiet fourth.
GRACE HILL REPLAY
The eighth qualifier was a nine-horse field of three-year-old colt and gelding pacers. Each horse earned less than $100,000, except Southwind Gendry (Gingras), the 2020 Pennsylvania Sires Stakes champion for freshman pacing males. He won after sitting third through the first five-eighths, going first-up around the final turn, and grinding down the leader in the stretch. Southwind Gendry clocked the fastest mile of the day to that point.
SOUTHWIND GENDRY REPLAY
Breeders Crown champion Summa Cum Laude (Dunn) took a solid second in the ninth qualifier for three-year-old colt and gelding pacers behind winner Lou’s Pearlman (Gingras). That one went in 1:53.3.
SUMMA CUM LAUDE REPLAY
2017 Little Brown Jug winner and Confederation Cup champion Filibuster Hanover (Gingras) featured in the 10th for aged male pacers and improved on his first qualifier of the season, winning in 1:51.4 to take the best time of the day at that point. He took position in the pocket, slid out in the stretch, and easily went by to score. Imarocnrollegend N (Joe Bongiorno), a $300,000+ earner, passed million-dollar horse Dealt A Winner (Dave Miller) in the stretch for second. The latter was third. Tulhurstsantanna A (Zeron) finished fourth, and Jumping Jake (Bob McClure) was fifth.
FILIBUSTER HANOVER REPLAY
Ruthless Hanover (McCarthy) upset several high-level stakes contenders in the finale for aged pacing males, as he brushed to the front on the backside, briefly lost the lead in the stretch, but got home to tie the day’s best time in 1:51.4. 2020 Little Brown Jug victor Captain Barbossa (Bongiorno) paced a :26.4 final quarter to get up for second, and The Greek Freak (Gingras) was third. Allywag Hanover (Dave Miller) paced a similarly timed final split to take fourth, as did De Los Cielos Deo (Dunn) for fifth. Noch Ten was sixth, and Hurrikanekingjames (Kirby) trailed the field.
RUTHLESS HANOVER REPLAY
Though the races were non-competitive, Gingras certainly won the day among reinsmen, piloting four high-class winners. McClure, who left Canada for the Big M yesterday, made his first appearance of the season at the track in the qualifying session.
The Meadowlands resumes live racing on Apr. 17 with 13 races beginning at 6:20 p.m. EDT.
For full qualifier results, click here.
by Nicholas Barnsdale, for Harnesslink