102 Fillies
Paid Into Hambletonian Oaks
The $1
million Hambletonian and filly companion stake, the $500,000 Hambletonian Oaks,
will be raced on Saturday afternoon, August 6, at the Meadowlands Racetrack,
East Rutherford, New Jersey. The 91st edition of the Open event will
feature eliminations and the final on the same day.
Eliminations
for the Hambletonian Oaks, if necessary, will be raced the prior week,
Saturday, July 30.
Mega-trainer
Ron Burke has the top-rated trotter in the experimental ratings two years in
row. Last year his filly Mission Brief was ranked #1 and finished second in the
Hambletonian to Pinkman, and this year’s dazzling colt Southwind Frank, who
lost just once in 12 starts last year and racked up $786,419 in earnings, is
also the winter-book favorite for America’s Trotting Classic.
“He is
training great,” said Burke. “He’s been in 2:20 and looks great. I kept him up
here this winter at Gaitway [Training Center, Manalapan, NJ] because I figured
if Takter wins Hambletonians by staying up here in the North, I’m staying up
here. If you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em.
“You have
to be ready by August and even with Mission Brief last year I always felt I was
chasing, chasing, and needed one more week. Keeping Southwind Frank and Make Or
Miss who is also coming along unbelievably well up here means they are on
schedule, and will be ready.”
Dan Patch
Trainer of the Year Jimmy Takter annexed a fourth Hambletonian title in 2015
with Pinkman, becoming just the fifth trainer to win consecutive Hambletonians
since 1926. No trainer has won three in a row, and another win by a
Takter-trainee would place him in the rarefied company of five-time
Hambletonian winners and immortals of the sport Ben White, Bill Haughton and
Stanley Dancer.
The Takter
stable has 10 trotters eligible to the Hambletonian, with the $324,405 earner
Lagerfeld leading the parade.
“Lagerfeld
is good but I have a few maybe a little better,” said Taker.” So many of them
were sick last year – I think Bar Hopping, Love Matters and the brother to
Shake It Cerry [Jimmy William] who is just training fantastic now, may be my
sleepers.”
Jimmy
William is a son of the Takter-owned and trained Solveig, who not only earned
more than $800,000 herself, but subsequently produced six foals whose current
winnings top $4.3 million.
Other
eligibles include Valley Victory winner Dog Gone Lucky from the Chuck Sylvester
stable; Derivative, a son of 2003 Hambletonian winner Amigo Hall who has
already made his first start this year for trainer Blair Burgess; Speed It, a
son of pacing sire Cam’s Rocket who produced the blazingly fast Googoo Gaagaa
for trainer Richard Hans, and the foreign owned,
bred and trained Ulisse Kronos, an unraced but highly regarded three-quarter
brother to Going Kronos.
The
Hambletonian has been hosted by the Meadowlands Racetrack since 1981. There are
no supplemental entries permitted in the Hambletonian and Oaks, nor are
participants in those events or the Hambletonian Maturity (July 18), permitted
the use of Lasix or Butazolidin.
The Hambletonian is the
first leg of the trotting Triple Crown, followed by the Yonkers Trot on
September 3 and the Kentucky Futurity on October 9.
The Hambletonian race is
also the longest-running live broadcast in harness racing. The August 6
event will be broadcast live on CBS Sport Network from 4:00-5:30 p.m. [EDT]
The
Hambletonian Trail commences Saturday, May 7, with the Dexter Cup and Lady
Suffolk at Freehold Raceway.
