Wilkes-Barre, PA — The first two of the five championship races for the Game of Claims Series at The Downs at Mohegan Sun Pocono will take place on Saturday afternoon (March 26), with the top eight horses per group after three preliminary legs squaring off. There will be a $40,000 championship for horses who wore a base tag of $25,000 in race 10, and a $25,000 championship for $15,000-level horses two races later.

The championships should be exciting races to watch, and certainly will pose a difficult challenge to handicappers and bettors; consider the following facts:

Not one of the 16 entrants in the two championships will be racing for the same stable they were in for the first preliminary.

Twelve of the 16 horses will be going for the big money in their first outing for new connections, as they were claimed out of their last preliminary race (everybody will be going home with whoever brought them to this dance, as there is no claiming out of the Game of Claims championships.

Every one of the 16 horses had at least one victory doing the preliminary legs, and half that number had two; however, the extremely competitive action yielded no horse who could “sweep” their three prelims (a fact that will be true for the rest of the Game of Claims divisions as well).

Add in “usual” handicapping factors as raw ability and speed, likely racing position, and (an important one here) which horses were picked by drivers named on several horses in a race, and the fans will have a big, though enjoyable challenge weighing the merits of the contestants.

Also on the Saturday card at Pocono is a $25,000 winners-over trotting event, slotted fifth on the 15-race card. Other undercard highlights include races on both gaits for conditioned horses, both climbing the class ladder and proven veterans, and high-priced claimers for those not quite making the Game of Claims championships.

Post time for this program is 1:30 p.m.; program pages are available at the PHHA website.