East Rutherford, NJ — Propelled by the track’s three most popular multi-leg wagers, betting eclipsed the $3 million mark for the first time in 2022 at The Meadowlands Saturday night (Feb. 26).

The action was fast and furious from the get-go on the 13-race card, as $309,688 was put in play on the first race, $73,504 of that in the 20-cent Pick-5 pool.

In race six, a 2022-best $104,703 was wagered in the 50-cent Early Pick-4, which served as the catalyst for the high single-race handle of the night at $352,929.

The 50-cent Late Pick-4, which kicked off in the 10th race, had a pool of $86,869, and paved the way for total action on that race of $296,000.

All-source handle for the night was $3,310,483.

‘History’ Wins Again: After a win last week that driver Todd McCarthy described as “humongous,” American History bumped up to the Preferred ranks and scored in the weekly $34,500 featured pace.

American History and driver Todd McCarthy took the Saturday night feature at The Meadowlands. Lisa photo.

Covered Bridge, the 8-5 favorite, was in search of his third straight victory against the best horses on the grounds and led the eight-horse field at the quarter in a sleepy :28.2. McCarthy then emerged from the three-hole and moved to the top at the three-eighths, cutting out the half in :56.1 and three-quarters in 1:23.1.

It was a two-horse sprint from there, and McCarthy knew the kind of stock he had pursuing him and opened up a two length edge at the eighth pole, which proved to be just enough, as Covered Bridge’s late surge in the final sixteenth came up a nose short in 1:49.4. Sonny Weaver N finished third.

“He definitely was as good as he was last week,” said McCarthy of American History. “He was a little more settled tonight. He was calmer. I got him to a spot where I would have been happy to sit until the backstretch, but given the slow first quarter, I had to move him a little earlier.

“Off that first half, I thought I had enough fuel left to get me there. He was pretty happy. He knows where the wire is and he dug in when Yannick’s (Gingras, driving Covered Bridge) horse was coming. Full credit to (trainer) Tony (Alagna) and the job he’s done. It’s hard for people to understand just how good he was last week given those headwinds. I was pretty confident with him tonight.”

American History, a 7-year-old son of American Ideal-Perfect Touch who is owned by Brad Grant, returned $10.00 to his backers as the 4-1 third choice in the betting and lifted his lifetime stats to 28 wins from 78 starts, good for a bankroll of $1,293,899.

Getting It Dunn: In his first appearance of 2022 at The Big M, three-time defending United States Harness Writers Association Driver of the Year Dexter Dunn showed no signs of rust, winning four times on the program.

Dunn scored with I’m A Big Deal ($15.00 to win in the fourth race), DA Delightful ($9.20 in the sixth), Monty Mono ($6.40 in the 11th) and Game Of Change ($33.20 in the 12th). Only Monty Mono went off as the post-time favorite.

A Little More: Leading driver Gingras upped his colony-leading dash-win total to 43 after registering a driving double. The 42-year-old Hall of Fame bound pilot has now won at least twice on all 13 Big M race cards in 2022.

One sharp bettor raked the pot in the 20-cent Survivor Pick-7, needing only the first six winners to cash in for $9,079.

Racing resumes Friday at 6:20 p.m.