East Rutherford, NJ — The National Football League playoffs, a championship UFC fight with a big-name meet and greet, an incredible five-course fine Asian meal, and, oh yeah, the best harness racing in the world, can all be found this Saturday (Jan. 20) at the mile track with a host of things to do, The Meadowlands.

“Our goal is to make The Meadowlands a destination for people who want a great night out,” said track Chief Operating Officer and General Manager Jason Settlemoir. “So, when we offer as many choices as we are this Saturday, it creates a handful of possibilities for patrons who want to have a night out who might not necessarily be fans of harness racing.”

Eat From The East, Learn From The West: On Saturday, enjoy a tour of flavors found across all of Asia in a five-course dinner that features a cocktail paired with each course.

Plus, enjoy a “Sports Betting 101” tutorial with Emily West. West is the midday host on The New 102.7 from 10 a.m.-3 p.m. She will talk about football, wagering basics and give out some tips for the night’s live harness racing.

The cost of $69.95 per person includes a live racing program as well as a $10 betting voucher. This offer is for those who are 21-years-of-age or older.

For more information, go here.

Big Fields, Big Payouts: Once again, the overflowing entry box at The Meadowlands will lead to many big fields this weekend.

On Friday, the 14-race program will feature one dozen 10-horse fields, while on Saturday, 11 of the 14 dashes will have 10 noses on the gate. There are 272 horses scheduled to start during the weekend, good for an average field size of 9.71 per race.

Big fields lead to less-predictable outcomes at The Big M, which sets the stage for some handsome payouts.

Some of the better returns last Friday (Jan. 12) came in the ninth-race $2 trifecta ($4,605.00), ninth-race 10-cent superfecta ($1,201.00) and 20-cent Pick-8 ($3,803.46).

Saturday’s (Jan. 13) highlight-reel returns came in the seventh-race 20-cent pentafecta ($6,107.42), 20-cent Survivor Pick-7 ($8,285.22), 13th-race $2 trifecta ($1,970.80), 20-cent Pick-6 ($6,221.50), 14th-race $2 trifecta ($3,269.80) and 14th-race $2 Late Daily Double ($891.40).

Did You Say Free? Free past performances for every race of every Meadowlands card are available by going to playmeadowlands.com.

The Sked: Racing will be conducted every Friday and Saturday throughout January with a first-race post time of 6:20 p.m.

Big M TV’s live “Racing from The Meadowlands” pregame show begins at 5:45 p.m.

Tyler “In The Sulky”: On Saturday, Dave Little will interview driver Tyler Miller on the pregame show “In the Sulky” segment, which takes place shortly after the broadcast begins.

“X” Marks The Spot: Everything Meadowlands is available by going on X (formerly known as Twitter). You can check in with the Big M team for early changes, racing information and staff selections by going to @themeadowlands or #playbigm.

Stay in touch with The Big M team of Jessica Otten (@JessicaOtten1), Dave Little (@DaveLittleBigM) and Ken Warkentin (@kenvoiceover).

The Great Eight: The Meadowlands provides eight opportunities for the player to make a score trying their luck betting in pools with a low 15 percent takeout. The lineup of The Big M’s “Great Eight” is as follows (all wagers — with the exception of the Pick-7 — are carryover eligible):

Race 1: 20-cent Pick-5
Race 2: 20-cent Survivor Pick-7
Race 4: 20-cent Pick-8
Race 6: 50-cent Pick-4 ($50,000 guarantee)
Race 7: 20-cent High-5
Race 8: 20-cent Pick-6
Race 10: 50-cent Pick-4 ($50,000 guarantee)
Race 11: 20-cent High-5

Witherite’s Race Reviews: Race reviews and selections by The Meadowlands’ morning-line oddsmaker and program analyst James Witherite are available 48 hours before a given race card. To access, simply go to playmeadowlands.com, go to the “handicapping” tab, then click “race reviews.”