Harness: Numbers side with 2-year-old Lasix ban, not for Meadowlands Pace

When The Meadowlands announced it was requesting that the New Jersey Racing Commission permit them to ban the use of Lasix in 2-year-olds starting in 2020, there was the usual mixed bag of responses via social media ranging from anger to it being a “non-story” in the overall scheme of things.

As I wrote a column back in March concluding that the use of Lasix should continue, I was initially against this new agenda by The Meadowlands. Then I took a close-up look at the numbers.

The initial release by The Meadowlands stated that just seven 2-year-olds raced at that location using Lasix in 2018 and that number sounded convincing since the mile track in East Rutherford tends to lure many rookie trotters and pacers. But that sample size was still small, so we reached out to the United States Trotting Association for more data on 2-year-olds and found that of 4,120 starters only 251 used Lasix (just 6%). Interestingly the numbers for pacers and trotters individually are nearly identical, with pacers at 6.2% and trotters 5.8%.

Whether you believe Lasix is good, bad or indifferent for horses, it is foolish to be outraged over something that is affecting just 6% of the 2-year-old population. That said, while the inability to use Lasix may indeed convince some trainers to sit their young prospects on the sidelines if they are showing signs of bleeding, others will race them anyway and that may be worse than the negative perception in some eyes of having Lasix available for that age group.

For the time being I’ll put on my rose-colored glasses and assume everyone will do what is best for the horses while moving on to what could be a more troubling part of the announcement from The Meadowlands. The release also announced the intention of the track to ban Lasix for 3-year-olds competing in the Meadowlands Pace beginning in 2021.

Before diving into the numbers for the Pace starters specifically, according to the USTA 37% of 3-year-olds in 2018 race on Lasix, and the total is even a bit higher for pacers at 39%. That’s a big jump from just 6% for 2-year-olds!

Since we don’t live in a perfect world where everyone is honest, there is a chance that number is artificially high and some trainers have horses on Lasix when they don’t REALLY need it. So I’ll give it the benefit of the doubt and say 30% of 3-year-olds, but that’s still a large chunk of horses that could potentially be banned from competing in the Meadowlands Pace, or worse come off Lasix to race, something I hate to see when handicapping.

Looking at the Pace over the last 10 years, 26 of the 100 starters in the final raced on Lasix and 38 of the 151 horses in the eliminations were on the medication. So 25% of the horses that raced in the Meadowlands Pace over the last decade were racing on Lasix. That is concerning.

If the entire 25% sat on the sidelines and decided not to nominate, where would that leave the signature race at The Meadowlands? Would the purse suffer? Certainly the pool of contenders would be decreased enough that eliminations may not be necessary.

As an aside and perhaps this is a fact all trainers should ponder for a while, despite 26% of the starters in the Meadowlands Pace final being on Lasix, not one of the winners in the final raced on the medication. You have to go back 16 years to Allamerican Theory as the last Lasix user to win the Meadowlands Pace.

Of course, the Hambletonian, harness racing’s most prestigious race in North America and perhaps the world, does not permit the use of Lasix. While quick logic would have you think if it is good for the Hambletonian why not the Meadowlands Pace, it is difficult to compare the most heralded Standardbred trophy in the U.S., a prize that nearly every owner, trainer and driver dream about winning, with what is realistically one of a handful of top 3-year-old pace races with large purses and prestige.

There are eight 3-year-old races for pacing colts and geldings worth between $400,000 and $760,000 and the Meadowlands Pace is one of those very important stakes. There is ONE race for 3-year-olds worth $1,000,000, and with all due respect to the five other stakes worth north of $400,000 for sophomore trotters and the eight for pacers, none of them, or any race for that matter, carries the weight of the Hambletonian.

No race in North America should ever be compared to the Hambletonian. It is not fair to the race or the Hambletonian. If a horse is on Lasix, he can choose to skip the Meadowlands Pace and aim for the North America Cup, Max Hempt and Adios, all contested over eight consecutive weeks from mid-June to late July. It is highly unlikely that a Hambletonian-caliber trotter is going to skip the race because he is on Lasix. There is no comparable race.

We can argue all day long about whether Lasix is good or bad; a useful medication or a masking agent for performance enhancing drugs. There are no doubt plusses and minuses on both sides of the spectrum. I’m not necessarily leading the charge on banning Lasix for 2-year-olds but it’s not worth fighting over. Now 3-year-olds, that’s another story and I’ll stand my ground.

Who knows what the future will bring? The Meadowlands already stated they will reevaluate at the end of the 2021 and I’m sure if the Meadowlands Pace is hurt by the change they will act swiftly. There is also the possibility of the Federal government taking charge by that time. The situation is clearly in flux. Stay tuned!