Meadowlands: Hambletonian, Oaks winners battle in Joie De Vie

It's a rarity in modern times to have a pair of Hambletonian winners racing competitively as older horses. Rarer, to say the least, is to have two mares that have captured the Open stake in recent years meeting up for the first time.

When 2018 Hambletonian winner Atlanta meets the 2020 champion Ramona Hill in Saturday's $156,000 Joie De Vie, it will be unique for certain. Whether Ramona Hill, just a 4-year-old, will be competitive against 10 older mares at the Meadowlands remains to be seen. Yannick Gingras, who guides Atlanta from post six in the ninth race, exudes confidence in his mare.

"She's always good when she's fresh," Gingras said Tuesday of Atlanta, who he piloted to victory in a $40,000 Open last Saturday at The Meadowlands.

"They bred her this year, and that changed the way they trained her back," said Gingras. "I wanted to give her a decent trip, and it worked out great."

Atlanta, a daughter of Chapter Seven, overpowered When Dovescry in her 2021 debut and seems more than ready for a larger field and tougher competition. Trainer Ron Burke has done a great job preparing Atlanta for battle, but Saturday's field is likely among the deepest she has faced in some time. Ramona Hill (post five) was a solid second against 4-year-old male competition in the Graduate at the Meadowlands on June 19. Last year's Hambletonian champion was a nose shy of Atlanta when the two met in a qualifier at Gaitway Farm on June 14, but must prove herself with the money on the line.

The Joie De Vie has power from all fronts, including a pair of Hambletonian Oaks champions in the 2019 victor When Dovescry (post 11) and last year's champion Sorella (post 10). Add the 2020 sophomore Breeders Crown filly champion Next Level Stuff (post nine) to the mix, and it's easy to see this won't be a one-mare race.

Not to be overlooked in any analysis is Hypnotic AM, already a 1:50 3/5 winner in a leg of the Graduate this year for trainer Marcus Melander, and the beneficiary of the pole position in the field.

"She's a tough horse and is as fast as any of these fillies, even Atlanta," said Melander. "She's been racing for a little time now, and she should be coming into this race in full form."

Gingras likes his chances in the $135,000 Crawford Farms for Open trotters, carded as the fifth race, with It's Academic (post seven), already a six-time winner in 2021, including three consecutive legs of the Graduate.

"He's a horse that's got great tactical speed," said Gingras of the 4-year-old by Uncle Peter.

The Crawford field may have just seven horses, but it includes a Hambletonian winner and a Hambletonian Oaks champion as well. Forbidden Trade, the 2019 Hambletonian champion, landed the pole position for trainer Luc Blais, and that's the best starting position of the year for the son of Kadabra, who picks up Dan Dube. Manchego, the 2018 Oaks champion, drew post four with Dexter Dunn aboard, looking for her fourth straight win of the year without defeat. On June 12 Gingras guided Manchego to a victory in a leg of the Miss Versatility at the Meadowlands and has a pretty good idea what he's up against on Saturday.

"She's much more relaxed now than she was as a younger horse," said Gingras of Manchego, who he drove to the Oaks victory. "But I think It's Academic is very good, and we're not going to make it easy on Manchego."

A total of 19 older male pacers drew into the Roll With Joe, and that forced the group to be split into two divisions. This Is The Plan (post four) will go in the $113,000 first division carded as race eight on the program.

"I was a little disappointed in him last week," said Gingras frankly of the second-place finish after This Is The Plan set a very comfortable pace only to be out-sprinted by Angers Bayama, who he'll meet again on Saturday.

"Maybe it was the three weeks off," Gingras said, suggesting the gap between This Is The Plan's incredible 1:47 3/5 world record-setting performance in the Battle Of Lake Erie over Northfield Park's half-mile track on June 5 and the June 26 race played a role. "You just can't send him full tilt out of there every week."

This Is The Plan, a 6-year-old, has already exceeded his 2020 earnings with $462,000 banked. His record reads three wins and seven seconds in 10 starts. Among the victories was a memorable post eight triumph in the $514K MGM Borgata Pacing Series final at Yonkers in April.

Backstreet Shadow (post nine), another Burke-trained veteran, looks for his third straight victory at the Meadowlands in the second $111,500 Roll With Joe division, race 10 on the card. The son of Shadow Play posted a career-best 1:47 3/5 mile on June 19 at the Meadowlands as a tune-up.

The fourth major stakes event of the night at the Meadowlands is the $160,000 Artiscape for top pacing mares (race six). Nine entered the contest, with Gingras listed on one of two Nancy Takter-trained mares, Peaky Sneaky. Last year's upset winner in the Breeders Crown has yet to win in 2021 in five tries.

"Two starts back she finished really well," said Gingras with hope that the daughter of Bettor's Delight was turning the corner. "Then she didn't finish that well last time."

Peaky Sneaky is going to have to be better having drawn post nine, but in the mare's defense she was one of many that were powerless to track down race-winner Racine Bell, who went wire-to-wire with a back half in 53 seconds in the Kissin In The Sand final on June 19.

Trainer Jim King Jr. appears to have the upper hand in the Artiscape with the rugged Lyons Sentinel (post three) and the speedy Soho Burning Love A (post six), a 1:48 2/5 winner this year at the Meadowlands in the field.

With 13 races programmed the Meadowlands card has a listed first post at 6:20 p.m.