Hightstown, NJ – The road to the 101st edition of America’s Trotting Classic, August’s $1 million Hambletonian Stakes for 3-year-olds, begins Saturday (May 2) when the Meadowlands hosts a field of eight sophomore male trotters for the Grade 3 Dexter Cup.
This year’s $157,125 Dexter Cup, the season’s first Grand Circuit race for 3-year-old trotters, features seven Hambletonian eligibles, including two from the stable of three-time Hambletonian-winning trainer Ake Svanstedt.
Svanstedt will send out Magic Punk and Nordic Dancer S, who is a full brother to his 2025 Hambletonian champion, Nordic Catcher S.
Magic Punk, a son of Wishing Stone-I D Entity NO, hit the board in seven of eight races last year, with four wins. His victories included two divisions of the Kindergarten Classic Series and an elimination of the William Wellwood Memorial. He finished second to Ardonne in the Grade 1 Wellwood final and also was second to Apex in the Grade 1 Peter Haughton Memorial. He earned $220,878 for owner Magic Punk Inc.
“He feels a little better than last year, he’s filled out, and it will be interesting to see what he can do,” said Svanstedt, who will be in the sulky behind Magic Punk in Saturday’s Dexter Cup. “He’s a good horse. He has a good attitude. He’s fast and strong and nice to drive. Everything is good with him. If he’s going to compete at the top level, he must take one more step forward from last year, but he looks good when we train him.”
Magic Punk, who was timed in 1:55.3 in a third-place qualifier finish on April 18 at the Big M, will leave from post six Saturday and is the 4-1 second choice on the morning line.
Nordic Dancer S, a son of Six Pack-That Woman Hanover, won two of eight races last year and earned $31,840 for owner Flygind Gaard Inc. He closed his freshman campaign with a victory in a division of the John Simpson Sr. Memorial in October at Pocono Downs at Mohegan Pennsylvania.
Scott Zeron will drive Nordic Dancer S, who leaves from post five and is 8-1 on the morning line. He heads to the Dexter Cup off a second-place finish in a qualifier, timed in 1:57.2, at the Meadowlands on April 18.
“He was tall and skinny last year, he didn’t have so much muscle, but now he has filled out,” Svanstedt said about Nordic Dancer S. “He looks better and he has trained better, so I hope he can be a better horse this year.”
As for any similarities with his Hambletonian-winning sibling, Svanstedt said, “You can see that they are brothers, but this one didn’t have the same early speed as Nordic Catcher. Maybe this one can be a better horse as he gets older.”
Svanstedt is a three-time winner of the Dexter Cup.
The remaining Hambletonian-eligible horses in the Dexter Cup field are: Cambridge Hanover (trained by Andrew Harris), Jim Beam (Scott DiDomenico), Midwind Chimp and Neighver Punt (both Marcus Melander), and Who’s Eyes Blues (Ron Burke).
Ron Coyne Jr.-trained Southwind Alamo, the only horse in the Dexter field with a start this season (a 1:53.3 win on April 16 at Harrah’s Philadelphia), is the 3-1 morning-line favorite. He will leave from post four with driver Todd McCarthy.
The Grade 1 Hambletonian final is Aug. 8 at the Meadowlands.
Saturday’s Meadowlands card also includes the $67,650 Lady Suffolk, for 3-year-old female trotters. The event attracted a field of nine, with six being eligible to the Grade 1 Hambletonian Oaks in August at the Big M.
Svanstedt will send out two of the Oaks eligibles, All Time Trot S and Busy Miss Lissy S. All Time Trot, who will be driven by Yannick Gingras, is the 5-2 morning-line favorite. Busy Miss Lissy S, who will have Svanstedt in the bike, is the 3-1 second choice.
All Time Trot S, a daughter of Googoo Gaagaa-Gorgeous Am, finished her 2025 season by winning the Grade 1 Goldsmith Maid Stakes at the Meadowlands, with Busy Miss Lissy S finishing third. One start earlier, Busy Miss Lissy S, a daughter of Calgary Games-Hill’s Angel S, won the Grade 3 Kindergarten final at the Big M, with All Time Trot S finishing second.
“Busy Miss Lissy looks the same as last year,” Svanstedt said. “She hasn’t grown much, just a little. She’s a small one, but she has a good gait and she is a fighter.
“All Time Trot filled out, and her gait is better than last year. It will be interesting to see what she can do. She developed later but she made a lot of money ($278,202) and was really good in her last races.”
The trainer added about his four Saturday stakes horses overall, “They all look good, but you never know what the other horses can do in the first race of the year. But we are excited to start up. It was a long winter.”
Racing begins at 6:35 p.m. (EDT) at the Meadowlands. For free TrackMaster past performances for the Big M, click here.
For more about the Svanstedt Stable’s top returning 3-year-olds, and other top returning sophomores from around the sport, check out the Top Contenders Series on the USTA’s YouTube channel.