It was announced last month that harness racing would be moving to a Graded Stakes system in 2025, something that many of us who follow the sport have been requesting for quite some time. That request was often met with the sentiment of “with so many things that need to be fixed in harness racing, this is what you are worried about?” I always believed this was something that could be easily corrected, certainly easier than the more complex issues the sport faces. I, for one, am glad this change has come. Over the years, it will be interesting to see how this graded stakes committee adapts from one year to the next in not just assigning a grade to each race, but how they adjust the criteria for each grade with time. With that in mind, let’s take a look at the outcomes of the selected criteria and highlight potential needs for change moving forward. Beginning with the 2-year-old colt and gelding divisions, the first item that jumps off the page at me is that there is not a single freshman trot or pace that carries Grade Two status. Every race is either Grade One or Grade Three. The International Stallion Series and Bluegrass Series are given a Grade Three status, presumably because each of these races is split into divisions. But when combined, those purses can push close to $400,000. This seems like an easy adjustment to make in 2026 in terms of filling that Grade Two void for the freshman colts and geldings. The biggest issue I will have with the listed grades is the “Triple Crown” races for 3-year-olds. Now that there is a Graded Staking System, in order for a race to maintain its status as a part of the Triple Crown, it must be classified a Grade One race. On the 3-year-old pacing side, only one of the three events that comprise the Pacing Triple Crown is a Grade One race, that being the Little Brown Jug. The Cane Pace and the Messenger Stakes are both listed as Grade Two events. Certainly an argument can be made and has been made by many, myself included, that the Triple Crown series in harness racing has become antiquated. We are ignoring the current landscape of the industry to protect history. In 2024, The Messenger Stakes carried a total purse of $275,000, with $225,000 allocated to the Final. The staking rules require a race to carry a purse of $350,000 to be considered for Grade One status. The Cane Pace carried a purse of $248,000 and consisted of a five-horse field. Simply put, if The Meadowlands and Yonkers want these races to remain a part of the Pacing Triple Crown, they have to guarantee the purse at $350,000. That being said, many racing fans, including myself, believe the Pacing Triple Crown should be The North America Cup, Meadowlands Pace and Little Brown Jug. Either way, Grade Two races should not be a part of a “Triple Crown” or in my opinion the series loses even more credence. I believe this system being implemented can push those racetracks to boost those events to Grade One status or see them dropped from the Triple Crown altogether. The same can be said for the Yonkers Trot, which is the only leg of the Trotting Triple Crown that does not carry Grade One status. The other two, The Hambletonian and Kentucky Futurity are both Grade One events. The 2024 Yonkers Trot carried a total purse of $325,000 with the Final going for $300,000. Yonkers should increase that purse to $350,000 in order for the race to achieve Grade One status and remain a part of the Trotting Triple Crown. If they do not, the Canadian Trotting Classic, which is the only other non-Breeders Crown Grade One event for sophomore trotters, should become a part of the Triple Crown series. Unfortunately, The Meadowlands reduced the William Haughton Memorial to a $275,000 event, making it ineligible for Grade One status. For lack of a better term, that is a real shame. The Haughton is not just a great race every year. It is an historic race. In 1996, while known as the Governor Alfred E. Driscoll Pace, Jenna’s Beach Boy lowered the all-age World Record to 1:47 3/5 in an epic confrontation with the sensational Riyadh. That record would stand for 10 years until Holborn Hanover paced a 1:46 4/5 mile in what was then known as the U.S. Pacing Championship in 2006. In 1999, the Driscoll was renamed for William R. Haughton and the purse was increased to $600,000, and in 2022, while still carrying a purse of $500,000, Bulldog Hanover paced the fastest mile in harness racing history and the first sub-1:46 mile, winning the event in 1:45 4/5. Regardless of purse and regardless of what the graded stakes committee labels it, the Haughton is a Grade One race. But, The Meadowlands should increase the purse to $350,000 in 2026 to ensure it is recognized as one. The system will not be perfect initially and as outlined above, there clearly are some items that need to be addressed, but this will be good for harness racing and was a welcome change. Next, let’s start timing these races in hundredths of a second!