23 entered in Meadowlands Pace; 3 elims

A total of 23  horses were entered in the Meadowlands Pace, and three eliminations have been drawn. Two eight-horse fields and one seven-horse field have been carded for Saturday night at the Meadowlands. Each elimination carries a purse of $50,000, with $1 million up for grabs in the final.

 

Sportswriter, the North America Cup and defending divisional champion, tops the list of 23 colts and geldings bidding for a spot in the $1 million Meadowlands Pace on Saturday night. 

The top three finishers in each elimination, plus the fastest fourth overall, will advance to the Meadowlands Pace final on July 17.

 

Sportswriter will start from post five in the last of the three eliminations, race six, for trainer Casie Coleman and driver Mark Macdonald. The colt overcame quarter cracks in his feet to capture the $1,455,000 Pepsi North America Cup in a stakes-record time of 1:48.3 on June 26 at Mohawk Racetrack. The victory boosted Sportwriter’s 2010 earnings to $746,780 for owners Steve Calhoun, West Wins Stable and Southwind Farm.

“His feet are finally in great shape,” Coleman said. “They’re cold, no pulse. The quarter cracks have grown out a lot. For the North America Cup, he was sound in that final, but he did race with his quarter cracks and heels still wired up. Normally, ‘Sports’ is quite low maintenance. He is now a lot sounder, so I can step up his training a little. I could hardly train the colt at all the last few weeks while waiting to sound up his feet.”

 

The son of Artsplace was named 2-Year-Old Colt Pacer of the Year in both the United States and Canada last year after winning seven of eight races, including the $920,000 Metro Final. Sportswriter bids to become the ninth North America Cup winner to also capture the $1 million Meadowlands Pace, while Coleman aims to be the first woman to harness a Pace winner. Coleman will be the featured guest In The Sulky on Meadowlands Racetrack’s Thursday pre-card broadcast. Fans can e-mail questions for her to answer on-air to racing@thebigm.com.

 

The complete fields are listed below:

 

 First Elimination

Post-Horse--Driver/Trainer

1--Delmarelous--B. Sears/B. Teague

2--Superbad Hanover--G. Brennan/Kostas Tsanakos

3--one More Laugh--T. Tetrick/R. Schnittker

4--Kyle Major--J. Jamieson/S. Robinson

5--Jo Pa's Fod---J. Campbell/Jim Campbell

6--Rock N Roll Heaven--J. Campbell/B. Saunders

7--All Speed Hanover--R. Pierce/N. Daley

8--World of Rocknroll--R. Pierce/R. Norman

 

Second Elimination

1--Razzle Dazzle--J. Campbell/J. Silverman

2--Rockin Image--Y. Gingras/J. Takter

3--Ideal matters--B. Sears/N. Daley

4--Nova Artist--B. Sears/L. Pena

5--Tobago Cays--J. Campbell/J. Webster

6--I'm Gorgeous--B. Sears/G. Teague Jr.

7--Shoobee's Place--D. Miller/R. Norman

 

Third Elimination

1--OK Commander--B. Sears/G. McNair

2--Foreign Officer--Y. Gingras/T. Alagna

3--Valentino--G. Brennan/L. Pena

4--We Will See--B. Miller/S. DePinto

5--Sportswriter--M. MacDonald/C. Coleman

6--Iam Bonasera--J. Jamieson/E. Miller

7--Fred And Ginger--D. Palone/R. Burke

8--Windfall Blue Chip--A. Miller/G. Teague Jr.