Fields drawn for Borgata, Matchmaker finals

Yonkers, NY — The biggest card on the harness racing calendar so far in 2023 will take place on Monday night (April 24) at MGM Yonkers Raceway as the $511,000 MGM Borgata Pacing Series and $328,000 Blue Chip Matchmaker Series finals take place.

Twelve races were drawn in total for Monday’s program, and the Borgata final will go as the ninth dash. Idealsomemagic A was the top point-earner during the five-week series, and he had good fortune in the open draw, landing post three for driver George Brennan and trainer Cory Stratton. On the other hand, Backstreet Shadow, who tied the Yonkers all-age track record on April 10 with a 1:49.3 mile, was not as lucky, as he wound up with the outside post eight for driver Matt Kakaley and trainer Travis Alexander.

Idealsomemagic A, the top point earner through the five preliminary rounds of the Borgata, has drawn post three for Monday’s $511,000 final. Mike Lizzi photo.

This Is The Plan and Funatthebeach N, the last two Borgata champions, will also compete in this year’s championship. This Is The Plan landed post two for driver Yannick Gingras and trainer Ron Burke, while Funatthebeach N will leave from post six for driver Jordan Stratton and trainer Jeff Gillis.

The full field for the MGM Borgata Pacing Series final is as follows with listed driver and trainer:

1. Covered Bridge (Tyler Buter/Jeff Gillis)
2. This Is The Plan (Yannick Gingras/Ron Burke)
3. Idealsomemagic A (George Brennan/Cory Stratton)
4. Leonidas A (Austin Siegelman/Matthew Medeiros)
5. Hellabalou (Gingras also listed for Burke)
6. Funatthebeach N (Jordan Stratton/Jeff Gillis)
7. Lochinvar Art A (Lauren Tritton/Shane Tritton)
8. Backstreet Shadow (Matt Kakaley/Travis Alexander)

As far as the Matchmaker final (race eight) goes, Dougs Babe A picked up the most points during the prelims and then drew post three. Dexter Dunn will drive for trainer Nifty Norman. To Dougs Babe A’s inside are multi-leg winners Amazing Dream N (Gingras/Linda Toscano) and Racine Bell (Jason Bartlett/Dave Dewhurst), and another double-leg victor Lucky Artist A (Braxten Boyd/Ricky Bucci) is to her outside. Also in the field is defending champion Drama Act, who will depart from post six after winning two preliminary rounds for Brennan and Burke.

The full group of pacing mares will line up behind the gate as follows with listed driver and trainer:

1. Amazing Dream N (Yannick Gingras/Linda Toscano)
2. Racine Bell (Jason Bartlett/Dave Dewhurst)
3. Dougs Babe A (Dexter Dunn/Nifty Norman)
4. Lucky Artist A (Braxten Boyd/Ricky Bucci)
5. Lit De Rose (Pat Lachance drives and trains)
6. Drama Act (George Brennan/Ron Burke)
7. Incaseyoudidntknow (Andy McCarthy/Les Givens)
8. Karma Seelster (Matt Kakaley/Andrew Adamczyk)

On the undercard, there will be two Borgata consolations worth $100,000 and $50,000 (races six and seven) and a $75,000 Matchmaker consolation (race five).

To complement the series finals, the Empire Terrace dining room will be open on Monday evening. Owners and fans are invited to attend the races and enjoy a dinner buffet for $50 per person (plus 20 percent gratuity). A cash bar will also be available. No reservations are required, but those interested can call 914.457.2627 for more details.

Also, continuing through May 18, the Pick-5 pool on Thursdays at Yonkers will be seeded with $10,000 and also have a guaranteed pool of $25,000. This initiative is being offered in partnership with the Standardbred Owners Association of New York as part of the United States Trotting Association’s Strategic Wagering Program.

Prior to the big card on Monday, Wednesday night’s (April 19) action at Yonkers will include four $25,000 divisions of the final leg of the John Brennan Trotting Series.

Yonkers is currently operating on a Monday-through-Friday live racing schedule with post time at 7 p.m. (EDT).

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