East Rutherford, NJ — The next-to-last weekend of racing at The Meadowlands means the impending conclusion of the Championship Meet has wall-to-wall stakes events certain to get harness fans’ hearts racing, with the highlighted contests coming on Saturday (July 29) when eliminations for the $1 million Hambletonian and $500,000 Hambletonian Oaks take place.

In addition, the track will host its annual “Seafood Fest” on Saturday with local food trucks serving up fresh seafood. For those who aren’t into seafood, they will not be left out, as there will be plenty of other food trucks offering up many different varieties of great things to eat.

While Saturday offers much to both the racing fan and the foodie, Friday is one for the bettor as the 14-race card will be highlighted by a carryover on the Early 10-cent Hi-5. There were no winning tickets sold last Saturday on the seventh race Hi-5, creating a carryover of $14,932. These carryovers are such a big opportunity for the player, and the mathematics prove that.

In the event there is $99,000 or less in “new money” wagered into the pool, bettors will be trying to make a score in a pot with a “negative takeout,” meaning that winning tickets will pay out more money than what will be bet on Friday, with the carryover soaking up the “rake.”

The Fields: Click here for the fields for the Hambletonian and Hambletonian Oaks eliminations that will take place Saturday night at The Meadowlands (in addition to the fields for the entire card). Horses who are in the top five in the official order of finish will qualify for their respective finals, which will be contested on Saturday (Aug. 5).

The Big Day: Hambletonian Day brings the curtain down on the track’s Championship Meet, with the biggest race card the sport offers. The first of 16 races will head to the gate at noon. The Big M’s live pregame show will begin at 11:30 a.m. and all of the action from start to finish can be seen on Racetrack Television Network (rtn.tv), as well as The Meadowlands Facebook and Youtube pages.

Live coverage of the Hambletonian (post time, 4:45 p.m.) will be shown to a national television audience on Fox Sports (WNYW-Ch. 5; FOX 5 New York) as part of the “Saratoga Saturday” broadcast that will also show the Whitney Stakes (post time, 5:43 p.m.) from Saratoga. The show is put together by the TV team at the New York Racing Association (NYRA).

But that’s not all the stakes action that will be seen coast-to-coast.

There will be a second show, this one to be broadcast on Fox Sports 2 (FS2). “Saratoga Live” begins at 6 p.m. and will feature the Hambletonian Oaks (post time, 6:30 p.m.) as well as the final two races of the day at The Spa.

Big M TV’s Jessica Otten and Gabe Prewitt will be providing the commentary on The Meadowlands events.

To see a list of all broadcasts for Hambletonian Day, click here.

National Exposure: The remaining schedule for when Meadowlands races will be shown on either FOX, FS1 or FS2 is as follows (with highlighted races):

Saturday, Aug. 5 (FOX, 3-6 p.m.; FS2, 6-7 p.m., Hambletonian and Hambletonian Oaks, plus other stakes events for total purses of $3.5 million)
Sunday, Aug. 6 (Hambletonian replay show on CBS Sports Network, 2 p.m.)
Friday, Sept. 8 (FS1, 9-11 p.m.; New Jersey Classic Series finals)

“All of us at The Meadowlands have been so pleased with the partnership we have with the TV crew at The New York Racing Association (NYRA),” said Settlemoir. “They, along with the team at Fox Sports, put out a first-rate product on a show that is normally seen, in large part, by a Thoroughbred-centric audience. These shows have helped us display our competitive harness races to a fan base who now might be more likely to follow harness racing in addition to the runners.”

The Hambo’s A Dream: Head over to the American Dream Mall before the races on July 29 to have some fun that’s tied into “America’s Trotting Classic.”

While it’s true it’s actually a week before the $1 million Hambletonian for the best trotters in the world, the event is called “Hambletonian Day at American Dream” and takes place in The Garden Court, where you can get a chance to pet and take a photo with a live pony. The free event also includes horse racing memorabilia, trophies and free discount offers and much more.

For more information, click here.

Hambo Day At The Track: There are several options for Hambletonian Day seating and dining.

For complete information on Hambo Day festivities and the impressive stakes menu click here.

Casino And Poker Night: The Hambletonian Charity Casino and Poker Night takes place on Friday (Aug. 4) and is presented by the Standardbred Retirement Foundation and the Harness Racing Museum and Hall of Fame.

For more information, click here. To purchase tickets, click here.

Don’t Pay: Free past performances for every race of every Meadowlands card are available by going to playmeadowlands.com.

Tweet Us: Everything Meadowlands is available by going on Twitter. You can check in with the Big M team for early changes, racing information and staff selections by going to @themeadowlands or #playbigm.

On race nights, stay in touch with The Big M team of Otten (@JessicaOtten1), Dave Little (@DaveLittleBigM), Ken Warkentin (@kenvoiceover), Edison Hatter (@Edison_1999_) and Prewitt (@gabe_prewitt).

Hatter’s Race Reviews: Race reviews and selections by The Meadowlands’ morning-line oddsmaker, program analyst and TV talent Hatter are available 48 hours before a given race card. To access this valuable information from one of the brightest young minds in the sport, simply go to playmeadowlands.com, go to the “handicapping” tab, then click “race reviews.”

Little, Otten Are ‘Masterful’: Nights 15 and 16 of the track’s “Battle of The Meadowlands Masterminds” handicapping contest went to Little and Otten, respectively.

On Friday (July 21), Little connected on a win parlay that created a hit of $1,190, while on Saturday (July 22), the consistent Otten scored with three win and place bets, enabling her to finish the night with $962.50.

The Masterminds competition will take place for the next three live race nights, and on-track patrons who select the winning handicapper on a given card will have a chance to win a grand prize of $10,000. The drawing takes place on Hambletonian Day.

The competitors are vying for a top prize of $1,000 that will be donated on their behalf to charity. Currently, Little is atop the leaderboard with $10,593.05, followed by Prewitt ($8,296.40), Otten ($6,866.50), Hatter ($5,744.50) and Warkentin ($4,285.00). The second-place finisher earns $500 for their charity, with third through fifth place getting $250.

Prewitt is playing for CBH Care, the charity that the late Dave Brower played for last year when he won the competition. Otten is playing for New Vocations, Little for the Standardbred Retirement Foundation, Warkentin the Harness Horse Youth Foundation and Hatter the Purple Haze Standardbred Adoption Program.

Horseplay Giveaway: Would you like to win a car?

Then come to The Meadowlands every live racing night for the “Horseplay Car Giveaway,” where the grand prize is a 2023 Toyota Camry.

For complete information and giveaway rules, click here.