East Rutherford, NJ — Winter racing at The Meadowlands has featured competitive full fields, and while 10 starters behind the gate is supposed to be a hindrance to horses looking to compile long winning streaks, such is not the case for Cellmate.
He’s popular with his fans — not to mention owners and trainers at the claiming box — having gone unbeaten is his last four starts, and the 5-year-old gelded son of Huntsville-Twin B Bikini will ramp up his drive for five Saturday (Jan. 18) in the sixth race at The Big M. He’ll leave from post two with Jason Bartlett in the bike as the 5-2 morning-line favorite.
“I didn’t notice the horse,” said Frank Calcagni, who became Cellmate’s trainer at the conclusion of his win last week. “My owners picked up on him. They kind of pick out their own horses. Cellmate slipped through the cracks on me, but he seems to be running on all cylinders right now. I like the lines on him and he’s nice to be around.”
Cellmate’s streak started on Dec. 7 in a $20,000 claimer with a victory for trainer Tom Fanning at the mile oval as the 4-5 favorite, which was followed by a win at 10-1 from post eight at Yonkers 12 days later in another $20,000 claiming event. After that race, trainer Mark Ford took Cellmate home on his trailer.
The next two starts — both in East Rutherford — brought more visits to the winner’s circle. A Dec. 28 score as the 9-5 public choice in a $25,000 claimer was followed by the last of Cellmate’s “Fab Four,” another victory at the $25,000 claiming level, this time as the 2-1 favorite. That’s when Calcagni and his owners claimed the lifetime winner of 14 of 58 starts, who has earnings of $115,561.
“I’m just going to give him a light week,” said Calcagni. “Cellmate was pressed in his win last week. I like that Hunt For Cash (who was second in that race), too. I had him in my barn a few weeks ago.
“I go by the horse’s form (when considering claims). I look back four, five, 10 lines and try to pick a horse that’s in form or getting in form.”
For Calcagni, the objective is to not have trainees in his barn for an extended period of time.
“I don’t like keeping horses very long,” said the 43-year-old conditioner. “Not more than a year. I want to see how they pan out, then I like to move them. I like fresh faces. I’m starting to get into the claiming game a little bit more. Horses can stay sharp when they move around from barn to barn.”
So, what’s the hope with Cellmate?
“I wouldn’t mind if he won this week and got claimed right back,” said Calcagni. “He’s in the right ($25,000) class. I would expect someone to put in a claim on him, but sometimes people are a little shy the first time in a new barn.”
Maybe that means Cellmate will get a stay from the Governor and get to be in Calcagni’s barn for another week or two.
SHOWING THE KIDS A THING OR TWO: The cold weather is supposed to be a time of year when the bigger names in the Meadowlands driver colony are vacationing somewhere warm, affording the track’s “Young Guns” an opportunity to win a lot of dashes.
Apparently, David Miller and Bartlett have a youthful spring in their respective steps.
Through the first four race cards of 2025, the 60-year-old Miller, who has said this will be his last year racing full time at The Big M, has 10 victories, good for second in the standings. He’s been ultra-consistent, recording no fewer than two but no more than three wins on any program.
Bartlett, 43, leads the colony with 14 walks down victory lane. The 13-time Yonkers kingpin won six races on Jan. 4 and followed that up with five more last Saturday (Jan. 11).
Thus far in 2025, only nine drivers have two or more Meadowlands wins. Miller and Bartlett have been so dominant, that their total of 24 victories are equal to that of the next seven drivers in the standings combined.
THE SCHEDULE: During the month of January, live racing will be conducted every Friday and Saturday with a first-race post-time of 6:20 p.m.
CHECK OUT THE SHOW: On live race nights, check out the live “Racing from The Meadowlands” pregame show at 5:45 p.m. when track announcer Ken Warkentin opens up the mic with a scene set and program changes before the team of Jessica Otten and Dave Little take over from the Sam McKee Memorial Broadcast Set with news, notes, selections and a look at the night’s featured races.
Trot Magazine’s John Rallis will be on hand this weekend conducting interviews from the back paddock throughout the evening for both programs.
WINNERS ON SET: Fans of Big M TV’s Dave Little scored after playing the longtime host’s Late 50-cent Pick-4 on Saturday (Jan. 11), cashing in for $155.55 after investing $36. For the night, Little selected five winners on top, including Maxim Hanover in the sixth race, who returned $12.20 to his backers.
FREE PPs: To show appreciation to its loyal fan base, The Meadowlands offers free program pages for every race of every race card on its website.
Go to playmeadowlands.com to get the past performances at absolutely no cost.
THE BILL OF FARE: Every night, The Meadowlands offers a marvelous menu of popular wagers that offer a low 15 percent takeout.
They are:
20-cent Pick-5: Races 1-5
20-cent Survivor Pick-7: Races 3-9 (mandatory payout nightly)
50-cent Pick-4: Races 6-9 ($50,000 guaranteed pool)
20-cent Pick-6: Races 8-13
50-cent Pick 4: Races 10-13 ($50,000 guaranteed pool)
10-cent Non-jackpot Pentafecta (Hi-5): Race 14
TIME TO GET SOCIAL: Everything Meadowlands is available by going on X. 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 Otten (@JessicaOtten1), Little (@DaveLittleBigM) and Warkentin (@kenvoiceover).
SHARPEN YOUR PENCILS: Come on out to the track on Friday (Jan. 17) for the first of what will be a monthly handicapping contest with a prize pool of $1,000.
Contestants must be on-site to participate and the top two finishers earn a spot in a $10,000 invitation-only handicapping contest that takes place in December.
For complete information, and to enter, go here.
CIRCLE THE DATE: One of The Big M’s most popular giveaways takes place on Saturday (Jan. 18), with the track’s 2025 calendar giveaway, which is chock full of photos commemorating highlights of the 2024 season.
Starting at 6 p.m., the first 1,000 guests will receive a calendar. One per person, please.
CHILI COOK-OFF: One of The Meadowlands’ more popular promotions is the Chili Cook-Off, and the winter edition of the tasty treat takes place on Saturday (Feb. 1).
There will be prizes for Homestyle Chili, Red Chili, People’s Choice Chili, Best Booth and Salsa.
If you are a cook, come on out and see how your skills in the kitchen stack up against everybody else’s in the contest. Not a cook? Come and get yourself some free samples all night long.
For complete information, and how to enter, go here.