Meadowlands: Analysis for Saturday 12/31

2022 STATS: 28 - 110 / $172.80 (-$47.20)
BEST BETS: 4 - 8 / $14.20 (-$1.80)
SPOT PLAYS: 1 - 8 / $14.60 (-$1.40)
BEST BET - WHOLE LOTTA LOU (13th)
SPOT PLAY - SEEUINNASHVILLE A (8th)

Happy New Year and thanks for following along with the DRF Harness analysis in 2022!

Race 1 - 3&4YO 25000-30000CLM HCP Pace

(4) DONTLIKEITLEAVE debuts for trainer Travis Alexander here and the previous connections thought enough of him to put him in several Grand Circuit events in the fall at Harrah's Hoosier Park. (2) LENDA HAND MAN moves back inside on the gate tonight and faces age-restricted competition rather than open TrackMaster Rating foes. (1) BOILER MAKER has three wins in his last five tries, including over open claimers at the Meadowlands a couple weeks ago.

[DRF HARNESS: Get Harness Eye PPs for this card]

Race 2 - TrackMaster Rating 74 or Less as of 12-27-22 Pace

(1) SPORTS HERO romped over GSY 1 foes at the Meadowlands in his first try for trainer Nicole Dicostanzo on December 16 and meets up with a beatable group tonight. (4) THNDRFRMTHETHRON N beat TrackMaster 74's back on 11-18 and starts from a much better post this week. (3) PARTY BOY is in solid form and slides down from the TrackMaster 77 level.

[DRF BETS: Wager on tonight's Meadowlands card at DRF Bets.com!]

Race 3 - 3&4YO 15000-20000CLM HCP Pace

(7) SHARKY BEAR has performed well in both of his starts for trainer Crissy Crissman-Bier thus far, including a victory in an open claiming handicap event at Harrah's Philadelphia on Christmas Eve. (3) THIRD EDITION raced big from bad posts in two tries at the Meadowlands earlier this month, then got caught up in a pace duel on 12-17. I'll hope he's all right after the sick scratch at Monticello on December 27 and include. (6) FOX VALLEY CARLIN owns a win at The Big M on November 18 but has burned some money in his last pair.

Race 4 - Winners of 2 but not more than 4 Ext. PM Races or NW55000LT / 3&4YO 40000CLM Pace

(3) ARIO HANOVER scored convincingly at the Meadowlands on both 11-5 and on 11-26, with the latter appearance being at this level. (1) MIND HUNTER crunched NW4 company at Yonkers in his first try for trainer Per Engblom and starts from the pole position tonight. (2) STONEBRIDGE REEF has hit the board in all of his recent tries in this class, and I'll slot him underneath.

Race 5 - TrackMaster Rating 80 or Less as of 12-27-22 Pace

(1) ACTON HANOVER wound up first-over and finished sixth in his first start back in the Ron Burke barn on Christmas Eve at Harrah's Philadelphia. This appears to be a softer spot than that NW15000L5, and I'll swing with him. (7) GIVE US AWAVE A has shown some live legs in the final quarter in both his qualifier on 12-10 and pari-mutuel try on December 17. He also gets a bit of post relief after starting from the ten-hole in that last effort. (4) GRATEFUL KISS saw his run of on-the-board results come to an end on December 9 but just barely as he was fourth. I'll include.

Race 6 - 40000-50000CLM HCP Pace **$50,000 Guaranteed Pick 4 Pool**

(1) BRACKLEY BEACH ships in from Yonkers on a hot streak and has shown the ability to win both on the engine and doing the uncovered work. (2) OSTRO HANOVER faded late on 12-17 after grinding into a slow pace from first-up. He gets some post relief tonight and maybe a better trip will put him in the winner's circle. (3) CAPTIVATE HANOVER owns a win and a second in his last two starts for Burke and drew well here after starting from the eight-hole at Harrah's Philadelphia most recently.

Race 7 - TrackMaster Rating 86 or Less as of 12-27-22 Pace

(1) HOPNROLL HEAVEN moves over from Harrah's Philadelphia on a run of good performances for the Engblom barn and I like that he's won both on the lead and from off-the-pace. (3) HIGH BALLER backed up his win over TrackMaster 83's on 12-10 with a third in this class two weeks ago and hails from the always-capable Alexander stable. (8) REVOLVER N returns to the level he was victorious at last week. He could use the same type of fractions to chase that he got that night.

Race 8 - NW7500L5 Pace

(7) SEEUINNASHVILLE A finished out his mile with some interest from way off-the-pace a couple of weeks ago. He gets a driver change to the often-aggressive Tyler Miller here, and I'm guessing he won't be taking back again. (5) SPEEDY DOMINIC A continues to march down the class ladder and will probably come through with a victory soon, if not tonight. (2) SHVAIKO makes his second start back after a layoff and gained spots and ground in the stretch on 12-17. This horse took his life's mark at the Meadowlands earlier this year.

Race 9 - NW10500L5 Pace

(2) WHITECOOKIE picked up a win in the corresponding class to this one at Yonkers on 12-5 and has been racing against tougher $75,000 claimers across the river since then. (3) DIAMONDBEACH also comes over from Yonkers but did race once at the Meadowlands on November 5 and wound up a solid third against NW14000L5 company. (9) I'LL DRINK TO THAT is stuck outside on the gate again but, like my top pick, did score his most recent triumph at the NW10000L5 level at Yonkers.

Race 10 - NW14000L5/TrackMaster Rating 88.5 or Less as of 12-27-22 Pace **$50,000 Guaranteed Pick 4 Pool**

(4) ADRIANO HANOVER hikes up from the NW7500L5 level, but he's paced 26 and change last quarters in both of his local appearances and comes off a victory. I'll hope he can keep it rolling and slot him on top. (1) ULTIMAROCA is a little off form but drops out of tougher spots in Pennsylvania and New York and shows a victory over NW20000L5's at Harrah's Philadelphia. (3) CONTROL HEAVEN returns after making his last three appearances over at Harrah's Philadelphia. He has post relief off his last appearance on the five-eighths-mile oval and seems to have gotten sharp.

Race 11 - 20000-25000CLM HCP Pace

(8) SECRECY enters this race on a good run at Yonkers and has shown plenty of early foot on the half-mile oval, so the outside post doesn't trouble me too much. (3) TEXAS TERROR N ends his 14-year-old campaign tonight. He's been knocking on the door in recent weeks, and I wouldn't mind seeing the veteran pick up a victory. (1) FRONTIER ROLLO raced well at the Meadowlands last winter and has been freshened up.

Race 12 - TrackMaster Rating 83 or Less as of 12-27-22 Pace

(1) GAME OF CHANGE faces what looks to be a softer group of TrackMaster 83 rivals tonight and also moves inside on the gate. He hasn't had much success since moving to this level from the TrackMaster 80's but hopefully that'll change here. (4) LIKE CLOCKWORK finished third in a race that was dominated by Good Rockin two weeks ago and this horse has had plenty of success at the Meadowlands before. (2) LETSGOTOBRAZIL A returns to the Meadowlands after one unsuccessful try in the Preferred Handicap at Freehold. This is his second start out of the Izzy Estrada barn, too.

[DRF HARNESS: Sign up for our FREE DRF Harness Digest Newsletter]

Race 13 - NW3000L5 Pace

(10) WHOLE LOTTA LOU finds the bottom level in his Meadowlands comeback. He took his lifetime mark in 49 and change at the oval earlier in 2022, and I think he can bottom this group out, even from post ten. (8) RIFLEMAN takes a second crack at NW3000L5 company after finishing third as the favorite on 12-9. (2) DA GHETTO WIZARD picked up a couple of checks against NW5000L5's at Yonkers earlier this month. He makes his third start back after a layoff here.

Race 14 - TrackMaster Rating 77 or Less as of 12-27-22 Pace

(2) MELANIE'S NICK tallied at big odds two back in this class. He returns to it here and also gets reunited with Joe Bonigorno. (6) BUTTER UP gets reunited with Steve Smith tonight, and he piloted him to a gaining third-place result on December 3. (1) KIMANI N has three wins in his last five outings at Yonkers and will look to improve to two-for-two off the Cory Stratton claim.