East Rutherford, NJ — Foiled in an attempt to expand to a three-day-per-week schedule, The Meadowlands will add five more races each to the Friday (June 19) and Saturday (June 20) cards to help get more horses raced.

The process for the New Jersey Racing Commission to grant an additional card is too time consuming to address the immediate problem. So beginning next weekend, until Pennsylvania gets open, both Friday and Saturday will have 18-race cards, resulting in an additional 10 races.

To stay close at all to the budgeted purse account will require a 20 percent reduction, excluding the planned three 12 horse races per night, which will see 10 percent trimmed from their purse.

Purses will return to previous levels upon returning to the normal number of races.

The added races should provide a better opportunity for horsemen to get their 3-year-olds going in anticipation of upcoming stakes.

Post time will be moved up to 6 p.m. for the giant sized programs.