Turning a negative into a positive: new Meadowlands races strengthens the industry

How the track and New Jersey breeders and owners worked together to respond positively to the news the Hambletonian was leaving the state.

by Dave Briggs

About two hours after The Meadowlands announced it would replace the Hambletonian in its 2027 stakes lineup with the new $1 million Meadowlands Trot, Kevin Greenfield reached out to say it was all he needed to hear to keep stallions Tactical Landing and Karl in New Jersey.

Greenfield, the stallion manager for both studs, said he had been planning to move both trotters out of New Jersey due to the Hambletonian and Hambletonian Oaks’ departure for Indiana. That was prior toThursday’s (Sep. 17) announcement that Meadowlands owner Jeff Gural and the Standardbred Breeders and Owners Association of New Jersey (SBOANJ) had partnered to fill the gap left by the Hambletonian departing for Indiana.

“I always wanted to keep [the stallions in New Jersey],” said Greenfield. “I never wanted to move them [out of state], but I had to have a reason to keep them there. [The Meadowlands and SBOANJ] came through. They did their part, and I immediately announced [the stallions would stay in New Jersey] because that was my intention, and I’m just thrilled.

“I want to thank Jeff Gural and SBOANJ for all their hard work after the Hambletonian left. [The departure] was a big shock, and, essentially, the perception was that the [New Jersey] program was on life support. We needed to come up with something [to fill the gap], and, more specifically, before the Lexington sale, which told everybody that the [New Jersey] program was vibrant, The Meadowlands wasn’t going anywhere, and that there was incentives for New Jersey-breds.”

Tactical Landing and Karl both stood at Southwind Farms in New Jersey in 2026, but were due to be moved elsewhere after Southwind announced at the end of June that it will cease operations at the end of the 2028 season. Now, instead of them being moved out of state, Greenfield said the two stallions will transition to Walnridge Farm in Cream Ridge, NJ in order to remain in the New Jersey program.

One of the advantages of the new Meadowlands Trot and the $500,000 Meadowlands Oaks Trot, is a new 20-per cent purse bonus if the winner is New Jersey-sired.

“A million-dollar race and a $500,000 one doesn’t help the New Jersey people or the New Jersey-breds,” Greenfield said. “To Jeff’s credit and to the SBOANJ’s credit, they came up with [the bonus], and that’s what was needed.”

In the end, this is about turning a negative into a positive and everyone playing a role to benefit the entire industry.

Oddly, harness racing now finds itself in a better position today than a month ago when the announcement was made that the Hambletonian was moving and concerns grew for the future of racing in New Jersey.

Now the sport has another set of big-money stakes to support a return on investment for the owners and breeders that finance most of the participant side of the equation. That, in turn, is essential for buoying foal crops that help fill fields to drive wagering.

Harness racing needs as many strong jurisdictions as possible and it is imperative that New Jersey remain among them as the home of The Meadowlands, which draws the biggest harness racing handle in the U.S.

Greenfield, who operates Hickory Lane breeding farm in Ohio that is home to seven stallions, said the rise of midwestern jurisdictions such as Kentucky, Indiana and Ohio should not come at the expense of New Jersey or anywhere else – and he’s right.

“I have stallions all over the North America,” Greenfield said. “All of these programs have to survive… This shouldn’t be, ‘The heck with New Jersey…’ We have to look at all of them and try to do the best we can for all of these vibrant programs.

“This would have been at total tragedy to have nothing happen [in New Jersey] and have the stallions leave… It would have been a huge, critical blow to the industry, one that was maybe not recoverable.”

These new races, enhanced purses for other existing stakes such as the Dancer and Miller, and the bonuses are also key for Gural’s lobbying effort to get a casino at The Meadowlands.

He still faces stiff challenges both from politicians in Atlantic City and New York casinos interests, but working in solidarity with New Jersey breeders and owners to put up their own money to keep the track at the forefront of the sport and enhance agriculture in the state surely is more persuasive than his previous stance suggesting he’ll close the track if he doesn’t get a casino.

The new tack – and the fact Gural not only got this done in one month and is ponying up to make good on his promise to fight – sends a signal to the state that The Meadowlands is serious about trying to forge a future; one that is, perhaps, deserving of casino support.

That’s what makes the addition of these new races, and the added bonuses, one of the more positive stories of the year.

For sure, The Meadowlands needs to thrive for the sport to do the same.

But while the track alone still wields a lot of sway in harness racing, it is nowhere close to the power generated when Gural and the breeders, owners and horsepeople work together for the betterment of all.