Another alternative for gambling in New Jersey is set for Saturday, when handicappers will have their sights set on one of harness racing’s biggest events, the 46th edition of the $600,000 Meadowlands Pace for 3-year-old pacers at Meadowlands Racetrack in East Rutherford.
The Meadowlands Pace highlights a 14-race card that is worth more than $2.5 million in purses.
The races will be broadcast live on NYRA’s “America’s Day at the Races” on Fox Sports 2 (FS2) from 8-11 p.m. and will be listed as Race 12 on the card.
First post time is scheduled for 6:20 p.m.
In addition to the Meadowlands Pace, the race card includes the Del Miller (Race 2 and Race 3), Stanley Dancer (R4 and R6), Mistletoe Shalee (R7), Dorothy Haughton (R9), William Haughton (R10), and Hambletonian Maturity (R11).
“Bettors, get ready for an enormous buffet of action on Meadowlands Pace Night," said Jason Settlemoir, chief operating officer and general manager of The Meadowlands, in a news release. “With the card being broadcast to an international audience, we have significantly raised the stakes for the players on our signature night.
“We have doubled the guaranteed Pick-4 pools and given the players an enormous menu of non-stop wagering action. The 20-cent Pick-6 and Late 50-cent Pick-4 will both have The Meadowlands Pace as their final leg, a race on which the fortunes of horsemen and players on the greatest night in harness racing will be determined.”
The Big M will offer seven wagers with a low 15 percent takeout on Pace Night.
New Jersey has been in the national spotlight in horse racing recently for the implementation of fixed odds wagering at Monmouth Park.
2021 Meadowlands Pace Winner
Lawless Shadow was actually declared the winner of the Meadowlands Pace last year after Charlie May was disqualified for interference in the final turn of the race.
Charlie May was first across the finish line ahead of Lawless Shadow and favorite Perfect Sting in 1 minute, 48.3 seconds, but was placed ninth after interfering with Rockyroad Hanover while coming three-wide heading to the stretch.
Lawless Shadow was elevated to first, with Perfect Sting second and Southwind Gendry third.
Total handle for last year’s Meadowlands Pace 14-race program was more than $4.5 million, marking the second time that Pace Night wagering eclipsed the $4.5-million mark in the last 13 years.
The Pace itself took in $677,992 of play, the most on the race in 10 years.
Meadowlands Pace Field
2022 Meadowlands Pace field w/elimination drivers, trainers, ML odds:
- 1: Captain Cowboy, Dexter Dunn, Ake Svanstedt, 8-1
- 2: Caviart Camden, Todd McCarthy, Tony Alagna, 12-1
- 3: Night Hawk, David Miller, Brian Brown, 4-1
- 4: Market Based, Dexter Dunn, Nancy Takter, 5-1
- 5: Early Action, Brian Sears, Joe Holloway, 8-1
- 6: Beach Glass, Yannick Gingras, Brent MacGrath, 7-5
- 7: Fourever Boy, Mike Wilder, Tim Twaddle, 10-1
- 8: I Did It Myway, Andrew McCarthy, Tony Alagna, 10-1
- 9: Mad Max Hanover, Tim Tetrick, Jake Leamon, 15-1
- 10: Captainryanmichael, Brian Sears, Joe Pavia Jr., 20-1
Last Saturday, all-source handle on the Meadowlands 13-race card totaled $3,282,634, an average per race of $252,510. Entering Friday night, there have been 53 race cards at The Big M in 2022 with 15 nights where wagering has gone over the $3 million mark.
