Meadowlands Media Relations
EAST RUTHERFORD, NJ – The final
“circle-worthy” date on the 2021 harness racing calendar proved to be deserving
of every bit of bright ink, as handle cleared the $3-million mark on “Fall
Final Four/TVG Finals Night” last Saturday (Nov. 20) at The Meadowlands,
marking the first time since 2013 that that hurdle was cleared on the final big
night of racing of the year.
“We are thrilled that the handle was
very strong for the TVG Finals and the Final Four,” said track Chief Operating
Officer and General Manager Jason Settlemoir. “The inaugural TVG in 2013
featured the much-hyped race between the classic champion and richest horse of
all time, Foiled Again, and the 3-year-old sensation, Captaintreacherous. We have
never been able to get near that handle figure until this year. The total
handle of almost $3.4 million was sensational, when you consider that 2013 was
the only year that TVG Finals Night did over $3 million. That is, until this
year.”
Total play on last Saturday’s card
was $3,390,635, which was just $100,000 less than what was put in play in 2013.
THE WINNERS: The eight-pack of stakes events had
purses that totaled $2,689,100, and the winners of those races read like a
who’s who of big 2021 hitters:
·
TVG Open Pace: Allywag Hanover locked up divisional
honors with an off-the-pace win in 1:48.1.
·
TVG Open Trot: 2019 Hambletonian champion Forbidden
Trade put his hat in the ring for a possible divisional Dan Patch Award.
·
TVG Mare Pace: Lyon’s Sentinel clinched her division
after getting some revenge on arch-rival – and Breeders Crown winner –
Rocknificent.
·
TVG Mare Trot: Brett Pelling trainee When Dovescry
continued her fabulous campaign by taking down Atlanta.
·
Governor’s Cup
(2YOCGP): Early
Action took down Hammering Hank, who lost for only the third time in 11 starts
this year. Early Action, who was fifth in the Breeders Crown and second in the
Kindergarten, has won eight-of-13 starts during 2021.
·
Valley Victory
(2YOCGT): Fast As
The Wind skimmed the cones for a second straight start to take down primary foe
Coach K Hanover to complete a sweep of the Kindergarten and Valley Victory.
·
Three Diamonds
(2YOFP): Niki Hill
likely swung a few Horse of the Year voters into her camp after another
thoroughly dominant performance. She’s lost only once this year in 10 starts
and has banked over $900,000.
·
Joviality S (2YOFT): A second straight masterful drive
from Brian Sears got the Marcus Melander trainee to the winner’s circle nine
days after her Breeders Crown score.
SEE YOU FRIDAY: The day after Thanksgiving, live
racing resumes at The Big M. Racing will take place Friday and Saturday. Post
time for the first race is 6:20 p.m.
“On behalf of Mr. Gural, and everyone
at The Meadowlands,” said Settlemoir, “we would like to wish everyone a joyous,
happy and healthy Thanksgiving holiday.”
Meadowlands TV’s “Racing from The
Meadowlands” live pre-game show gets underway both nights at 5:47 p.m. with the
track’s regular team of Dave Brower and Dave Little providing on-set
commentary.
FREE PROGRAMS! Talk about a great deal! Free program
pages for every race of every Meadowlands race card are always available. Just
go to playmeadowlands.com to access
the no-cost past performances.
COME OUT AND PLAY: It’s always best when watching and
wagering on the action at The Meadowlands to come out and be there in person,
but for those who either live too far away or can’t make it out to the races
for any reason, they can still experience the best harness racing in the world
several ways.
An affordable way to view not only
the action at The Big M, but virtually all harness and Thoroughbred tracks, is
to get a subscription to the Roberts Television Network. For more information,
go to rtn.tv.
There are a handful of
Advance-Deposit Wagering spots where one can wager on Meadowlands races. One
such sight where you can make bets and watch the action live is the Television
Games Network. For more information, go to tvg.com.
GET SOCIAL: Everything Meadowlands is available
by going on Twitter. You can check in with the Big M team for early changes,
racing information and staff selections by going to @themeadowlands or
#playbigm.
On race nights, stay in touch with
Jessica Otten (@JessicaOtten1), Dave Brower (@eedoogie), Dave Little
(@DaveLittleBigM), Ken Warkentin (@kenvoiceover), Shades (@ShadesOnRacing) and
Edison Hatter (@Edison_1999_).
WHO DOES BROWER LIKE? For expert selections and analysis of
every Big M card, check out track oddsmaker Dave Brower’s race reviews.
For Brower’s input, which is generally
available 48 hours before every card, go to playmeadowlands.com,
then click on the “handicapping” tab and go to “race reviews”.
LOW TAKEOUT, HIGH EXPECTATIONS: Plenty of The Meadowlands’ popular
wagers that sport a low 15 per cent takeout are available on a nightly basis.
They are:
·
Race 1: 20-cent Pick-5
·
Race 3: 20-cent Survivor Pick-7
·
Race 6: 50-cent Early Pick-4 ($50,000
guaranteed pool)
·
Race 7*: 20-cent Pick-6 (* -- Race 8 on
Saturday)
·
Race 9*: 50-cent Late Pick-4 ($50,000
guaranteed pool) (* -- Race 10 on Saturday)
·
Race 12*: 10-cent non-jackpot Pentafecta/Hi-5
(* -- Race 13 on Saturday)
SPEND THANKSGIVING IN “THE BOOK”: Before having turkey, potatoes and
cranberry sauce, come out to the grandstand at The Meadowlands and get your NFL
bets in at one of the leading sportsbooks in the country, the FanDuel
Sportsbook.
There are three games on the
Thanksgiving Day schedule.
At 12:30 p.m., the Detroit Lions seek
their first win of the season as they take on the visiting Chicago Bears. The
Bears are -3 and -146 on the money line. The under/over is 41½.
At 4:30 p.m., the Cowboys are a
7½-point favorite (-350 on the money line) as the Las Vegas Raiders come to
Dallas for the second NFL game of the day. The under/over is 51½.
Finally, at 8:20 p.m., the Buffalo
Bills travel to New Orleans where they will be a 6-point favorite over the
Saints. The Bills are -245 on the money line and the under/over is 45.
The book is open Monday through
Thursday from 10 a.m.-1 a.m.; Friday 10 a.m.-2 a.m.; Saturday 7 a.m.-2 a.m. and
Sunday 8 a.m.-12 a.m.
For more information, call
877-689-0662.
