North American News - Hambletonian elims set the stage at Big M

The road to one of harness racing’s most coveted prizes reaches a crucial point at The Meadowlands on Saturday night, with the eliminations for the 101st Hambletonian and Hambletonian Oaks bringing together many of North America’s leading three-year-old trotters.

A total of 19 colts and geldings will contest two $100,175 Hambletonian eliminations, with the first five finishers from each heat advancing to the $1 million Grade 1 Winning Key Farm Hambletonian final on August 8.

The opening elimination, carded as race seven, shapes as a particularly intriguing contest with several of the season’s leading contenders drawn alongside one another.

Apex, currently ranked No. 1 on Ken Warkentin’s Road to the Hambletonian, starts from post seven for trainer Marcus Melander and driver Dexter Dunn. The son of Walner enters the elimination with eight wins from 12 career starts and more than $1 million in earnings, having already added the New Jersey Sire Stakes championship and a Stanley Dancer Memorial division to his record this season.

Directly outside Apex is stablemate American Power, who will start from post eight with James MacDonald. American Power comes into the race off a career-best 1:50 victory in the Dr. Harry M. Zweig Memorial and has already shown he can match it with Apex, having defeated him earlier in the season.

The unbeaten run of Endurance also adds another layer to the first elimination. The Chris Beaver-trained colt has won three straight, including a Stanley Dancer division, and starts from post nine with Andrew McCarthy.

Yonkers Trot winner Inexpressable is another major player from post three, while last season’s William Wellwood Memorial winner Ardonne adds further depth to what looks like the stronger of the two eliminations.

The second Hambletonian heat features another highly credentialed group headed by Spencer Hanover.

The Marcus Melander-trained colt is the richest three-year-old trotter of the season and already owns victories in the Oak Grove Trotting Derby and Empire Breeders Classic. He starts from post three with Jason Bartlett.

Diabolic Hill, last year’s Valley Victory winner, must overcome post nine, while Dexter Cup winner Magic Punk, Ohio star Big Ranger and the talented Nix Nacken are also among the leading hopes.

Nix Nacken shares the fastest time recorded by a three-year-old trotter this season at 1:50, underlining the depth of a field where qualification for the final will be anything but straightforward.

The Hambletonian Oaks will also command plenty of attention, with 21 fillies spread across three $50,175 eliminations.

The top three finishers from each Oaks heat will qualify for the $500,000 final, along with the fourth-place finisher with the highest lifetime earnings.

Nezuko Kamado S brings an unbeaten 2026 record into the second elimination and owns the fastest mile by a sophomore trotting filly this season after stopping the clock in 1:50.1 in the Del Miller Memorial.

Jailbird Jog has been equally impressive and enters the first elimination as the richest three-year-old trotting filly of the season after wins in the Oak Grove Trotting Oaks, Del Miller Memorial and Tompkins-Geers Stakes.

The third Oaks elimination features reigning Dan Patch Award winner Setyoursightshigh, who has missed the top two just once in 16 career starts and arrives off victory in the Zweig Memorial Filly Trot.

With five elimination races spread across the card, Saturday night will provide the final major test before the Hambletonian and Hambletonian Oaks finals are decided one week later.

The Hambletonian eliminations are races seven and nine, while the Oaks eliminations are races one, four and six.

Racing at The Meadowlands begins at 6:20 p.m. EDT.

by Bevan Greig for Harnesslink