from the Meadowlands Publicity Department

East Rutherford, NJ — Fresh off a world record performance, Lucky Jim will try to extend his streak to six wins in the $96,000 Horse & Groom Final on Sunday afternoon (March 15) at the Meadowlands.

Lucky Jim is the prohibitive 2-5 morning line favorite in the fifth race feature for older trotters. He is undefeated since entering the care of trainer Julie Miller and her husband, driver Andy Miller, this winter.

“Lucky Jim was with Trond Smedshammer last year,” Andy Miller explained. “After they got done racing him in September, they castrated him and turned him out for a couple of months. We’ve had a couple of other horses for his co-owner, John Prushnok, and he just called us up and asked us if we wanted to take him. I knew he raced in Pennsylvania Sires Stakes and always had speed. There’s nothing real flashy about him. He’s just done everything we’ve asked him to do. He’s perfectly mannered and his gait seems to get better all the time. I think the time off and maturity has helped him a lot.

“I didn’t have any inkling he’d be this good,” he continued. “When I first qualified him, he kind of showed me he had some go and he was pretty strong. The last couple of times just before that qualifier he showed some sparks of having extra go. Then, his first race for us was really good.”

Though he finished second four times, Lucky Jim was 0-for-9 in 2008; however, this season he has not missed the winner’s circle.

Last week, Lucky Jim equaled the world record for a 4-year-old trotting gelding on a mile track with a dazzling 1:51.3 mile in the second leg of the Horse & Groom Series. He joined the company of Flamewalker (May 25, 2007), also campaigned by the Millers, and Corleone Kosmos (July 22, 2006).

“Last week, my cover was a little dull, but when I tipped him he just had his mind on winning,” Miller said. “I didn’t really have an idea it was a world record, but I figured it was a big mile. I glanced over at the half in :55.2. I knew we weren’t going to slow down, but I didn’t expect that.

“It may be crazy to think about him breaking the 1:50 barrier down the road on the right day, but it can happen,” he continued. “I haven’t asked him to trot at all. It’s amazing what he’s done, but there are a couple of other good trotters out there. Somewhere along the way he’ll meet up with them.”

Despite his name, Lucky Jim has drawn outside in every start this season, including post eight in the Horse & Groom Final.

“The way he’s acted, I’ve been very content with racing him from off the pace,” Miller said. “We’ve drawn another outside post and I would like to keep racing him the same way, but we’ll have to see how the race sets up. So far there’s been really no need to race him hard early. He can just sprint off cover. He has no issues and you don’t have to be careful with him. The great thing is I haven’t had to ask him much. Every time I’ve pointed him and shown him racetrack in the lane he’s taken off.”

Lucky Jim will have ample opportunity to break records this season. He is eligible to the Arthur J. Cutler Memorial, Titan Cup and Classic Series at the Meadowlands. Miller acknowledges there have already been several offers to buy the horse, but says that his owners, David Prushnok, John Prushnok, William Gregg and Lindwood Farm, plan to hold on to him.

$96,000 Horse & Groom Final
HN, PP, Horse, Driver, Trainer, Odds
1, 1, Azur, Eric Goodell, Ron Burke, 15-1
1A, 10, Wind Surfer, Yannick Gingras, Ron Burke, 15-1
2, 6, Big Boy Lloyd, Jason Bartlett, Ken Rucker, 15-1
2A, 9, Stand Guard, David Miller, Ken Rucker, 15-1
3, 2, Knight Of Intrigue, George Brennan, Bruce Saunders, 6-1
4, 3, Kajan Kooker, Brian Sears, Mark Silva, 20-1
5, 4, Sauce Two K, Daniel Dube, Richard Johnson, 20-1
6, 5, Shoeless White Sox, Tim Tetrick, Mark Harder, 8-1
7, 7, Rompaway Alvin, Ron Pierce, Peter Kleinhans, 10-1
8, 8, Lucky Jim, Andy Miller, Julie Miller, 2-5

Registration open for Horseplayer World Series qualifier

Cash prizes and an entry in the 2010 Horseplayer World Series in Las Vegas are up for grabs Saturday, March 28, at Meadowlands Racetrack.

The annual Horseplayer World Series qualifier will be held beginning at 11:30 a.m. in Raceworld Teletheater on the Paddock Level. The cost to enter the tournament is $200 ($100 non-refundable entry fee/$100 required tournament bankroll). Entry includes simulcast program, Daily Racing Form and dining voucher.

Players must use a $100 bankroll to bet 10-15 races from Gulfstream Park, Aqueduct and Tampa Bay. Contest wagers must meet a $10 minimum, $100 maximum per race; be win, place or combination and on one horse per race. Contestants keep all pari-mutuel winnings. Prize payouts are to the Top 10. The top finisher qualifies for, and receives, round-trip airfare and on-site hotel accommodations to the Horseplayer World Series, Winter 2010, Orleans Casino, Las Vegas.

Limit two entries per person; tournament limited to 200 players. Early registration is strongly recommended.

Click here for complete contest rules and entry form.