Meadowlands: Positive start to 2023 on all fronts

(The following is an edited release from The Meadowlands)

There are many factors that go into the current resurgence that is taking place at The Meadowlands: A race office that provides what horsemen want, which leads to what bettors want, and a governor and state legislature that provided a jolt of much-needed revenue that helped not only the top harness racetrack in the world remain No. 1, but also fueled an entire industry in the Garden State.

As a result, business at The Meadowlands has been nothing short of sensational thus far during 2023.

"Our race office has done a tremendous job of carding full fields," said track Chief Operating Officer and General Manager Jason Settlemoir. "They are the key to our betting success. Full 10-horse fields are what our fan base craves. This weekend (Feb. 3-4) is another example of the good work our race office does. Twenty-four of our 28 races this weekend -- if there are no scratches -- will have 10 horses. Three have nine. The one race that has less than nine has eight, and that's our Saturday feature, which has some seriously talented horses in it. We are looking forward to what should be another big weekend of action."

The competitive racing at The Meadowlands leads to less predictability. Less predictability means fewer winning favorites, which is what Big M fans count on.

During January, Meadowlands' favorites clicked 35 percent of the time, the lowest winning rate in the game. The median percentage of winning favorites for the industry was 44.

For some perspective, Gulfstream Park, the most popular venue in Thoroughbred racing during January, also saw favorites win just 35 percent of the time.

During the month of January, things were jumping at The Big M's betting windows as all eight evening cards (the normal schedule is Friday-Saturday evenings, but during January, there were also two Sunday afternoon cards) saw betting break the $3-million barrier.

A remarkable improvement over the first month of 2022, which had six programs and zero $3-million nights.

Average nightly handle on Fridays during January of this year was $3.15 million. A year ago, that figure was $2.58 million.

Saturdays have seen more of the same. This year, an average of $3.39 million has been pushed through the windows as compared to last year's $2.57 million.

It's taken a total of eight Friday-Saturday programs for the Big M to register eight $3-million nights this year. During 2022, it wasn't until May 6 that wagering went past the $3-million mark for the eighth time, the 32nd program of the year.

"Things are going well," said Settlemoir. "And we very much appreciate our loyal fans, but none of this would have been possible without the help of Gov. (Phil) Murphy and the members of the New Jersey Legislature, who saw fit to help us at The Meadowlands -- not to mention the entire horse racing industry in New Jersey -- with a yearly appropriation that has helped maintain our purses at a high level. That's played a big part in keeping our horsemen excited about supporting our entry box, something that you've got to have to be successful in this business."

Ever since the first appropriation was put into the racing game in 2019, things have been on an upward trend, especially in the breeding business, where the New Jersey Sire Stakes series is now competitive on a national scale on the trotting side while the pacers continue their climb toward the top.

The NJSS will now contest the four finals for 2-year-olds during Hambletonian Weekend (Aug. 4-5) for purses totaling an estimated $960,000, with the rich New Jersey Classic -- the brainchild of Big M President and Chief Executive Officer Jeff Gural -- to follow soon thereafter, which will feature eight finals that will go for an estimated $1.7 million.

It's easy to chart handle success, but the effect of the appropriation reaches further when one considers where the sport was in New Jersey when it was first introduced as compared to now.

"The tremendous betting numbers that The Meadowlands has put up this January is certainly reason for optimism throughout harness racing," said Hambletonian Society President and Chief Executive Officer John Campbell. "The handle at The Hambletonian, Meadowlands Pace and Breeders Crown was up significantly in 2022. The handle at The Meadowlands and Woodbine Mohawk (Park) was very strong, and that trend is continuing into the New Year.

"Batavia Downs had an all-time record handle this week. I attended the Prix d'Amerique this past weekend in Paris. They had a huge crowd and a Euro Handle of over $30 million. All of this is reason for optimism as we move through 2023 and it shows that the betting public will respond to competitive harness racing."