View Harness Racing History

1977
On September 6, the Meadowlands opened its doors for its first ever Thoroughbred meet to 25,158 who bet $2,480,393 – skies were cloudy and the track was fast. The JohnMazza-trainedPlaythePalacewon the first race andRushing Man became the first stakes winner at the East Rutherford track when he won the Paterson Handicap the same night. Sam Maple ran away with the jockey‘s title with 82 wins. Denise O‘Hara became the first female jockey to win a race at the Meadowlands Racetrack with Jersey Giant.

1978
A Tuesday opening day draws 32,048 and the first $3 million handle in Meadowlands history. Dr. Patches upset Triple Crown winner Seattle Slew in the Paterson Handicap. Trainer John Forbes saddled four winners in one night on November 8. Jill Davis becomes the first female trainer to win a race at the Meadowlands when she won with Indoctrinato.

1979
A record 41,155 turned out on a sunny Labor Day card for the first of the 100-day meet. Champion Two-Year-Old colt Fappiano won the six furlong Morven Stakes in 1:08 3, a record which still stands for that stakes. Heavily favored Spectacular Bid, the Òbest horse to look through a bridle,“ according to trainer Budd Delp, won the Meadowlands Cup under Bill Shoemaker. The $2.20 payoff is the shortest win price in Meadowlands history. Mary Edens became the first woman trainer to saddle a stakes winner at the Meadowlands with Honey Bee Handicap winner Heavenly Ade. Karen Rogers is the first female rider to win three races on a single card, September 19. Early bird betting debuts. The average daily handle for the meet was $2,025,540.

1980
Skipat won both the Miss Liberty and Miss Prosperity Handicaps, while Carolina Command won the first running of the Gardenia. Lord Avie wins the Young America.

1981
Brooklyn-born Nick Santagata outduels Chuck Lopez to win the jockey‘s title with 65 victories. Mouse Corps became the highest claim of the meet, haltered for $40,000. A single day attendance record of 44,462 was set on September 16 as Sugar Ray Leonard defeats Tommy Hearns on closed circuit television.

1982
Mehmet defeated 1981 Horse of the Year John Henry in the Meadowlands Cup. Jockey Jean Luc-Samyn rode the winner of five of the first nine added money events of the season. Led by Laffit Pincay, Jr., five jockeys from the West coast defeated their East coast counterparts in the TWA East-West Jockey Challenge. Champion mare Princess Rooney wins the Gardenia.

1983
Two sons of Seattle Slew succeeded at the track where their sire couldn‘t win–Slewpy won the Meadowlands Cup, and future Kentucky Derby winner Swale won the Young America Stakes. Five track records were broken at the meet: Shattering established a new five furlong mark, King Bold Reality set a 5 1/2 furlong record, Fog a Balla bettered Fappiano‘s four year old six furlong time, Always Up set the 1 mile 70 yards mark, and Scarlet Invader set the 1 3/16 mile record. Apprentice jockey Jose Ferrer is the first rider to notch five winners on a single card when he does it on Thanksgiving Day, November 24.

1984
A single day handle record of $4,216,080 was set on October 13. Put It In The Park became the highest priced claim in Meadowlands history, taken for $50,000. John Henry wins the first Ballantine Scotch Classic in what becomes the last race of his career. Eclipse Champion sprinter Eillo wins the Chief Pennekeck.

1985
Herb McCauley was leading rider with a record 131 wins, including five in one night on November 18. Bounding Basque equaled Tunerup‘s track record for 1 1/4 miles while winning the Meadowlands Cup. Skip Trial, who defeated Horse of the Year Spend a Buck at Monmouth, won the Pegasus and dead-heated with Fighting Fit in the Paterson. Simulcasting, which had been discontinued on March 28 as unconstitutional, passes as a referendum and returns December 3 to stay.

1986
Paddock Park opens at the top of the stretch. The grassy area features outdoor concerts and al fresco dining. Chris Antley won the riding title, while Alan Seewald was leading conditioner.

1987
Jockey Julie Krone becomes the first woman jockey to earn leading rider honors at the Meadowlands. Both Chris Antley and Julie Krone had 5-win days: Antley twice, on October 6 and October 31, while Krone scored with five on November 10. Belmont Stakes winner Creme Fraiche won the Meadowlands Cup. Cryptoclearance won the Pegasus Handicap. Led by Julie Krone, the ladies won the Meadowlands Jockey Challenge Battle of the Sexes on November 5. Woody Stephens sent out another stakes winner in Creme Fraiche, who defeated Skip Trial, Cryptoclearance and Afleet in the Meadowlands Cup. Infield matrix board debuts.

1988
Alysheba sets the Meadowlands 1 1/4 mile track record in winning the Meadowlands Cup on his way to Horse of the Year honors. Cryptoclearance returned to win the Paterson Handicap. Julie Krone won a record 132 races enroute to the jockey‘s title.

1989
Future sprint champion Housebuster easily won the Morven Stakes. Julie Krone won her third straight Meadowlands title, winning six races in one day on September 16.

1990
Sprint Champion Safely Kept won the first of her back-to-back Meadowlands Budweiser Breeders‘ Cup Handicaps. David Aljure‘s Great Normand returned the Meadowlands highest win payout of $354.80 with his upset victory in the Meadowlands Cup. Trainer Richard Lundy wins his third consecutive New Jersey Turf Classic, this time with Allen Paulson‘s Vaguely Hidden. The Meadowlands undergoes a $10 million renovation, including the addition of a VIP Club, corporate dining facilities, tableside television monitors, handicapping centers, and a sports bar. The first floor of the racetrack is renamed the Paddock Level.

1991
Twilight Agenda and Chris McCarron won the Meadowlands Cup, defeating Pegasus winner and stakes record setter Scan. My Frenchman set a five furlong turf course record in the Mercer County Stakes. Joe Bravo was the leading rider at the meet, the first of a Meadowlands record eight titles.

1992
Five million dollars worth of renovations were completed including the installation of high-tech teletheatres, a video replay center and a new Sony Jumbotron matrix system. Full card simulcasting began. Joe Bravo repeated as top rider. Sea Cadet, known nationally because of his bobbed tail, won the Meadowlands Cup.

1993
An upgraded mutuel system and new box seat area were completed. Hall of Fame jockey Bill Shoemaker, who won the 1979 edition of the Meadowlands Cup aboard Spectacular Bid, returned as a trainer, saddling Pegasus winner Diazo. Jockey Mike Smith, on his way to breaking Pat Day‘s 61-race record for number of stakes wins in a single year, won five at the Meadowlands, including the Grade III Honey Bee Handicap for the second year in a row.

1994
A record-setting season had a nightly average handle topping $2.6 million. Meadowlands Cup night saw the first $5 million handle as $5,025,645 was bet. Jockey Joe Bravo captured his fourth straight riding title with a record 142 wins. Sweet Beast set a new track record of 1:07 4 in winning the Eillo Stakes.

1995
Jockey Joe Bravo captures an unprecedented fifth straight riding title and trainer Dan Lopez takes his second straight Meadowlands championship. Canada‘s Horse of the Year Peaks and Valleys wins the Meadowlands Cup with Julie Krone aboard. Innovation continues as the watchword at the Meadowlands as an in-house sound-select system debuts and wagering in the United States is conducted for the first time on Australia‘s Melbourne Cup with the Meadowlands simulcasting hub. Jockey Nick Santagata becomes only the second rider in Meadowlands history to win 800 races (joining Herb McCauley).

1996
The season closes with the Meadowlands offering the highest average daily purses in its history, $167,000 nightly. The highlight of the live meet was Meadowlands Cup night when on-track attendance and handle were both up over Ô95 figures. West Coast invader Dramatic Gold tops Formal Gold to take the Cup. Joe Bravo returned the final days of the meet to wrest his sixth straight Meadowlands riding title from Chuck Lopez, while Clovis Crane earned the top apprentice title. Trainer Joe Orseno took his first Meadowlands title and Lois, Leonard and Jonathan Green‘s DJ Stable continued their spectacular season by taking top owner honors.

1997
racing season saw some major peaks and valleys. Weekends at the Meadowlands drew increased crowds during the 1997 Thoroughbred season and led the Big M to its first meet with average attendance up since 1991. Average on-track attendance wound up 6.7% with weekend averages up over 7%. Combined handle at the Meadowlands slipped nearly 8% for the meet to an average $1.8 million with on-track handle averaging $555,436 a 19% drop. The meet highlight was Pegasus night when 21,898, the largest Meadowlands crowd since since opening day September 3, 1990, saw Behrens defeat Anet. The Pegasus night purse distribution of $1.26 million was the highest in Meadowlands Thoroughbred history. Jockey Tommy Turner enjoyed a breakthrough year as he captured his first Meadowlands rider‘s title. The battles for leading trainer and owner honors went down to the last week with Eddie Broome capturing both titles for the first time. At year‘s end the on-site wagering at the Meadowlands was a North American leading $540 million.

1998
The Thoroughbred meet at the Meadowlands produced a total handle averaging $2,078,550, up by 13 percent over last year. Of that total, $608,965 was bet on track, a nearly 10 percent improvement over 1997. On-site handle, representing betting by Meadowlands‘ guests on both the live and incoming simulcast product, averaged $2,121,535, up by 18 percent, reflecting the interest in the New York Racing Association signal which joined the Meadowlands simulcasting calendar on October 1. Attendance for the meet averaged 8,450 on-site, an increase of 8.8 percent over 1997 and 12.8 percent over the 1996 figures. As a result of a banner fall meet, the Meadowlands was able to offer the highest Thoroughbred overnight purses in the track‘s 22-year history. The $197,857 nightly average was up more than 24 percent over last year. For the final three weeks of the meeting, purses averaged in excess of $227,000, thanks to two increases, and surpassed the $350,000 mark on five occasions. The first card of the season on September 11 signaled a positive turn in the business picture when a crowd of 17,038, the largest opening day crowd since 1994, turned out. The momentum continued on November 7 for Breeders‘ Cup Day, with a Meadowlands record handle of $2.78 million for the simulcast of racing‘s championship races.

1999
The 1999 Meadowlands Thoroughbred meet closed with purses at an all-time high as $222,255 was distributed nightly. The first week of the meet saw the second day cancelled due to inclement weather, but that did not dampen the overall numbers. Average daily overnight purses saw an increase of 12.4% which helped fuel a 3.7% increase in field size to an average of 7.83 per race. Total average daily handle was even with last year‘s numbers as $2,075,000 was wagered nightly, a decrease of just $3,000. Total attendance dipped slightly by 2.7% as an average of 8,223 people attended the races. On-track handle also showed a small decline as an average of $576,500 was wagered at the Meadowlands, a slip of 5.3%. The meet saw some significant accomplishments for the people involved in Thoroughbred racing as Jorge Chavez, Eclipse winning rider, captured the two premier events, The Meadowlands Cup aboard Pleasant Breeze and The Pegasus atop Forty One Carats. Joe Bravo set a new record at the Big M in Ô99 by capturing his seventh riding title, a record for the East Rutherford oval

2000
Two money milestones were reached at the Meadowlands meet. The first $3 million handle for a Pegasus night was registered and the strength of simulcasting was underscored when a total of $3 million was wagered on the Breeders‘ Cup races at both the Big M and Monmouth Park combined. On-site wagering for the meet topped $112 million, a 5.9 percent increase further showing the popularity of the Big M as a simulcast facility. Joe Bravo took an unprecedented eighth riding title, now accounting for one-third of the riding titles in the Big M‘s history. Trainer Eddie Broome took his third title in four years and Rachel Lavoy topped the apprentices for her second straight season. Richard Englander won his first owner‘s title.

2001
The $368,559 average daily purse distribution, a 72.2% increase over last year, was not only the highest in Meadowlands history, but it set a new mark for the state of new Jersey. Despite the brevity of the meet, $16.2 million was given away in purses, an all-time record that eclipsed the $12.46 million given in 1998. In the races for meet-end honors, Julian Pimentel became only the third apprentice in Meadowlands history to win the overall riding title. The leading trainer award went to Robert Klesaris, who celebrated his first Big M title since 1986. Racing highlights included a blanket finish in the $500,000 Grade 2 Meadowlands Cup with Gander coming out a head in front of Broken Vow and Include. The winner and the third place finisher both went on to compete in the Breeders' Cup Classic. The $250,000 Pegasus Handicap saw trainer P.G. Johnson's Volponi capture his first graded stakes.

2002
Taking home leading awards for the 2002 season were jockey Eddie King and trainer John McCaslin. Burning Roma captured the Meadowlands Cup for trainer Heather Giglio, defeating eventual Breeder's Cup Classic winner and 2001 Pegasus champion Volponi. Regal Sanction swept the Pegasus for trainer Jimmy Jerkens.

2003
The $400,000 Grade 2 Meadowlands Breeders' Cup might have been billed as a showcase for 2002 Breeders' Cup Classic winner Volponi, but it was Bowman's Band who had the winning tune in the premier event on the Meadowlands stakes schedule. Bowman's Band provided jockey Ramon Dominguez with one of six winners on the program, tying the track record set by Julie Krone in 1989. Eddie Broome, who was leading conditioner at the track in 1997, 1998 and 2000, took home the awards for both leading owner and trainer for the meet. The leading rider at the meet by a margin of 10 victories was Chuck Lopez, who had last won the Meadowlands jockeys' title in 1979 as an apprentice. Total handle increased 18.7 percent over the previous year.

2004
Wagering continued to increase, with an average of $2.2 million, nearly six percent over 2003. On October 28, 2004, New Jersey rolled out account wagering, permitting fan who live in the state to watch and wager on the internet - just in time for the Breeders' Cup simulcast from Lone Star park. Phone wagering would later become available in May 2005]. Stewart Elliott, acclaimed rider of Kentucky Derby winner Smarty Jones, captured the riding title with 37 wins and just over $1 million in earnings. Patricia Farro became the first woman to win a training crown at the Meadowlands. Anstu Stable's Balto Star held off 6-5 favorite Dynever to win the $500,000 Grade II Meadowlands Breeders' Cup.

2005
Highlighting the 25-date meet were more than $2 million in added money races, including four graded stakes. Tap Day captured the track’s signature event, the Grade II $500,000 Meadowlands Breeders’ Cup, while Magna Graduate took the Grade III $250,000 Pegasus Stakes. Joe Bravo secured his tenth Meadowlands riding title, while Jason Servis picked up his first leading trainer crown. The Meadowlands hosted the Katrina Invitational Jockey Challenge, bringing together Louisiana natives Kent Desormeaux, Craig Perret, Eddie Martin Jr. and Mark Guidry along with Hall of Famer Gary Stevens to compete against the local jockey colony and sign autographs. The fundraising effort produced more than $25,000 dedicated to help the recovery efforts for Louisiana horsemen who suffered damage from Hurricanes Katrina and Rita.

2006
The 2006 Thoroughbred Meet was plagued with an outbreak of equine herpes virus [EHV-1], which placed nearly 100 horses in quarantine and subjected another 1,000 horses stabled at Monmouth Park to biosecurity measures. Horses from other facilities were not able to ship in, resulting in fewer races each program and shorter fields. Jockey Jose Lezcano and trainer Jason Servis were the meet leaders. Master Command, ridden by John Velazquez, captured the track's signature event, the $500,000 Grade II Meadowlands Breeders' Cup, providing trainer Todd Pletcher with a record equaling 92nd stakes victory on the year, tying his mentor, D. Wayne Lukas.

2007
While much attention was focused on the Breeders’ Cup at its sister track, Monmouth Park, the Meadowlands hosted a brief, but intense meet in 2007. The striking grey gelding Diamond Stripes, with Cornelio Velasquez up, rallied between rivals to win the Grade II $500,000 Meadowlands Cup. The Rick Dutrow trainee used the Cup as a final stepping-stone to the Grade I Breeders’ Cup Classic at Monmouth Park, but never threatened Horse of the Year Curlin. Eddie Castro took home the leading rider title, , while Jermaine Bridgmohan was crowned top apprentice. Bruce Levine captured his first training title. The biggest milestone of the 2007 Thoroughbred meet actually took place off the racetrack with the opening of Favorites at Woodbridge, New Jersey’s first state-owned luxury off-track wagering facility.

View Harness Racing History