Meadowlands: Go Dog Go impresses in qualifiers
?q=100)
The Meadowlands played host to 10 qualifiers on Saturday morning, with some of last year's top stars out for a spin around the mile oval.
Go Dog Go (Todd McCarthy) won the opener that was full of Hambletonian eligibles, as the Carter Pinske-trained son of Greenshoe pulled two-wide out of third before three-quarters, stormed into the lead in the lane and pulled clear to defeat Gap Kronos S (Ake Svanstedt) by 4 3/4 lengths with a 26 2/5 final kicker. Dan Patch Award winner Maryland (Dexter Dunn) was kept quiet at the back of the five-horse field, angled out in the lane and passed one horse. He was timed in 1:56 2/5 with a 27 2/5 final kicker.
Java Jukebox, an unraced son of Muscle Hill, won qualifier #2 on the front-end in 1:54 4/5 for driver Yannick Gingras and trainer Ron Burke by a length over Blank (Dunn), who was a two-time stakes winner at The Red Mile last year. Both colts are Hambletonian eligibles, as is third-place finisher Portobarosso As (Andy Miller.
On the filly trot side, Hambletonian Oaks eligibles Tacky Sugar (Dexter Dunn / Marcus Melander) and R Lady W (Scott Zeron / Linda Toscano) captured their qualifiers in 1:57 and 1:56, respectively. Tacky Sugar is by Tactical Landing while R Lady W is a daughter of Walner.
► Sign up for our FREE DRF Harness Digest Newsletter
Zeron also collected victories during the session with Melander-trained Securiy Protected, a 4-year-old son of Walner, on the engine in 1:54 4/5 and with 3-year-old Captaintreacherous filly Ronstadt, a Tony Alagna trainee, from the two-hole in 1:53 1/5. Alagna also sent out Downbytheseaside colt Attaboychet (Anibal Borjas) to a 1:52 2/5 win.
Dunn guided 4-year-old He's Watching gelding Funtime Bayama, trained by Andrew Harris, to a 1:52 2/5 score and 3-year-old American Ideal colt American Son to a 1:51 mile for trainer Chris Ryder. Both horses tipped out of the pocket before three-quarters and were able to get the job done. Funtime Bayama, who defeated a field that included two-time Dan Patch Award recipient Captain Albano (finished an even third) was coming off a victory in the Ontario-sired Graduate Series final at Woodbine Mohawk Park, while American Son, a multiple stakes winner at Thed Mile last year, was qualifying for the fourth time in 2025 and was third in an overnight at the Meadowlands on May 3.
Strutsville, a 3-year-old daughter of Huntsville who won three legs and was second in the final of the Bobby Weiss Series over at Pocono, completed the qualifiers by prevailing on the lead in 1:53 1/5 for driver Todd McCarthy and trainer Ron Coyne Jr.