Meadowlands Saturday - Top Notch Race Card, Mandatory Payout High 5; Links

Saturday evening at the Meadowlands one of the best cards of the entire season will be contested -- The Meadowlands Pace.

The Pace has the two best horses so far in the sophomore division - Control the Moment and Racing Hill - in the best posts. Control the Moment finally gets that good post in a stakes final, so he should be heard from, but with his visually impressive last sixteenth into a slowing pace last week, he will likely be hugely overbet.

As as aside, a part of me would not be too sad to see him get roughed up, because of the driver change. Post 9's in stakes finals are brutal to navigate (just ask Dave Miller with all-world Always B Miki in his Pace Final), and driver Randy Waples did what he could from the far outside in those races. I despise driver changes when the previous driver had little to work with.

Regardless, back to the race, if you're price shopping you'll likely have to look beyond the top two. Lyons Snyder, to me, is the most obvious at a price.

Perhaps overshadowing the 'main' event, though, is a rematch between Always B Miki, Freaky Feet Pete and Wiggle It Jiggleit in the Haughton. If those three horses stay sound, I think we might have to get used to saying that.

In addition to the big races - most of which are deep and interesting to handicap - bettors will be most enthused by the $267,000 carryover that needs to be paid out, in the Golden Girls (Race 12, at 9 furlongs with 12 horses). That pool should reach over $1 million, and there are literally five or six horses who could win that race.

For a full program for tomorrow's big card, it's right here.

Harnessracingupdate has picks for the stakes from a few fellas right here.

Both the above links are pdf's,

Have a nice Friday everyone.