by Leon Zimmerman, for the New Jersey Sire Stakes

Trenton, NJ — The New Jersey Sire Stakes Program will crown its 2-year-old pacing and trotting champions at The Meadowlands on July 23 with purses totaling $800,000.

That will be the most Sire Stakes purse money distributed on any one night in NJSS history, with four $200,000 Premier Division championship finals on the racing program for 2-year-old pacing colts and geldings, pacing fillies, trotting colts and geldings and trotting fillies. In the past, these championship races were held on separate nights.

Last year, the Sire Stakes conducted its 3-year-old division championships on one night with purses totaling $700,000. Last month, purses totaled $1,075,000 for Jersey-breds on one night, but that included two special stakes races, the $500,000 Anthony Abbatiello New Jersey Classic and the $175,000 Thomas D’Altrui Miss New Jersey Pace and only the two NJSS 3-year-old trotting championships.

“Our 2-year-old “Night of Champions” at The Meadowlands will represent the single, largest payday for the New Jersey Sire Stakes program,” said Christopher Castens, NJSS executive director.