HORSEPLOP.COM
General Category => Harness Racing => Topic started by: Calhoun on September 12, 2025, 02:59:27 PM
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https://www.drf.com/news/harness-hambletonian-society-open-bidding-future-host-track-americas-trotting-classic
M1 will host in 2026 but did not exercise its exclusive Right to Renew which expired Sept 1, 2025.
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https://www.drf.com/news/harness-hambletonian-society-open-bidding-future-host-track-americas-trotting-classic
M1 will host in 2026 but did not exercise its exclusive Right to Renew which expired Sept 1, 2025.
Maybe it will be in KY...Oak Grove.
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I believe conditions state it must be a mile track and raced in the daylight.
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I think Gural is just looking for more sponsors to pay part of the purse because I don't think it's going anywhere.
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I think Gural is just looking for more sponsors to pay part of the purse because I don't think it's going anywhere.
I agree tmbz1
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I agree, I think this is more posturing by Gural. Maybe he's serious, maybe not. But with all the politics and posturing, all of this is causing more divisiveness. Sad state of affairs.
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need to be careful here
i like when some of these races go to the smaller areas as they can be unique and fun
for a start go back to heat racing on the same day no matter where it is raced
look at the doherty and the haughton, nice they are at hoosier but nobody gave a shit other than those racing in it
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Well Gural already won it, so no need to buy another one
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I think it is pretty obvious The Red Mile will do whatever it can to win the Hambo bid.
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the sport will die if the Hambo leaves the big m
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the sport will die if the Hambo leaves the big m
LOL. Walk down any street. Ask 100 people what the Hambletonian is. Maybe one might know.
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Bring it back to Goshen. They get a nice crowd for their July 4th races and you can't even bet. The whole town comes out. Fuck those slot factories.
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Bring it back to Goshen. They get a nice crowd for their July 4th races and you can't even bet. The whole town comes out. Fuck those slot factories.
They aren't bringing the Hambletonian to a piece of shit half mile track.
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i could be way off here, but i think M1 needs the hambo more than vice versa.
The race card on Hambo Day is the crown jewel of the meadowlands meet...
And the eliminations for these races leading up to the big races make for a nice July...
Seems like the east coast isnt the "mecca" it used to be---Indiana, ohio, and kentucky rising in prominence...
Anyone know what thehandle was on Hambo Day? seems to be what Gural cares about the most....
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I think the all in handle was about $7.5m, not including foreign wagering.
The Hambletonian Society oversees and manages over 150 races. It might not just be about the Hambo and Oaks. Those two could be the beginning. Playing chicken with the HS might not be a good idea, LOL. I think Gural knows exactly where the Hambo (and Oaks) would go if he doesn't go after it, so in the end, I think he's posturing for dollars. Contrary to what some people here think, he's not an idiot. Quite the contrary.
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The H. Society serves no purpose. Their races pay many bloated salaries. It was comedy reading how long & hard they prepared for #100. What were the big changes & new innovations? Every race could be run at the track it is at with a new name if need be.
I wonder if that is what Gural was thinking when he started the TVG.
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Jeff Gural statement on future of the Hambletonian at The Meadowlands
September 15, 2025 from Meadowlands Media Relations
East Rutherford, NJ – On behalf of Jeff Gural:
While I was aware that the Hambletonian Society was not going to offer us an extension of our Hambletonian contract unless we agreed to allow owners and trainers on our exclusion list to enter in the Hambletonian, the Oaks and the Maturity, I made it clear that it was not our intention to allow trainers suspected of using illegal performance enhancing drugs to race against those trainers who to the best of our knowledge are racing under the rules.
That seemed to be a major problem, along with the fact that they wanted to be sure that we would be able to host the race if we were not able to secure a casino license in 2027.
I made it clear that I was highly confident that we would be able to receive a casino license, but it would be impossible for me to make a five-year commitment without having a license in hand. I also made it clear to Mr. Campbell that we had no intention of bidding for the Hambletonian after next year so the decision to put it out for bid essentially means that the Hambletonian will no longer be held at the Meadowlands after 2026.
For those people purchasing trotting yearlings this fall I want to make it perfectly clear that if they are lucky like I was this year to have a horse good enough to participate and actually win the race, in 2027 it most likely will be held in Anderson, IN or Campbellsville, ON. They seem to me to be the only logical racetracks that can host the event since I doubt if the Society is willing to race on a smaller track.
Our plan, if we do get a casino, would be to use the $1,050,000 that we currently allot for added money to the Hambletonian races from our purse account, for other trotting races, but obviously there is no guarantee that we will have a casino.
While we all love the sport, the sad part is that most people don’t know we exist. When I tell someone that I own The Meadowlands the typical response would be that they used to come there with their grandfather. When I tell them that I race and breed trotters I get a variety of responses:
Aren’t those races fixed?
Aren’t those horses drugged?
What are trotters?
In order for me to get a license the state has to pass a referendum that would allow a casino at the Meadowlands. Currently under state law the only place casinos are allowed is in Atlantic City. There will be a massive amount of money spent by casinos in NY, PA and Atlantic City opposing the referendum. It is critical that I show them that it was more important for me to make sure that drug trainers were not allowed to race in the Hambletonian and that is why it was moved out of the Meadowlands. I cannot afford the animal welfare people to attack me on the integrity issue, and I think this will put that issue to bed.
In my opinion, we have gone out of our way since I took over in 2011 to make sure the Hambletonian had a home here at the Meadowlands. Anyone who attended the race this year at the 100th Anniversary was hopefully impressed by all of the events that were conducted along with the large crowd in attendance, not to mention that I actually owned a piece of Nordic Catcher, the winner.
What hurts the most is the fact that had I not stepped up at the very last moment to keep the state from closing the Meadowlands and subsequently building a new $120 Million grandstand dedicated entirely to horseracing, the breeding industry would not be booming the way it has over the last few years.
I doubt if anyone other than those on our exclusion list would like to see the race moved so hopefully, they can make their feelings know.
While I recognize that the Society determines where the race is located, I hope they will change their mind. I made it clear that anyone on our exclusion list would be afforded a hearing and that Mr. Campbell can join as well.
To read the announcement from the Hambletonian Society on opening the bidding on future sites for the Hambletonian, click here.
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Gural won't back down. If he cant exclude the people he doesn't want in the race, he will never host it.
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2026 is going to be the last year of racing at the Meadowlands unless Gural sells it. I don’t see northern NJ getting a casino anytime soon.
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We may know in the first week in October whether the casino referendum will be on November's ballot in NJ. If it doesn't make it now, I would bet money it will be on there next year.
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We may know in the first week in October whether the casino referendum will be on November's ballot in NJ. If it doesn't make it now, I would bet money it will be on there next year.
They aren’t doing it for this year wants it to be on the ballot in 2026 an off election year. I also don’t see Gural giving up on The Meadowlands no matter if it passes or not. Fanduel is making between 40/60 million a MONTH in profit there, they said Gural signed a bad deal at 17%. Do the math he’s making out hand over fist.
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I think Gural is just looking for more sponsors to pay part of the purse because I don't think it's going anywhere.
If it goes anywhere it would be Kentucky because they have plenty of slot money! Gural knows that the meadowlands casino bid is no guarantee.
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If it leaves the Mlands, Gural might be upset enough to write a race for same date with more $$ and let the drug trainers go elsewhere.
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please someone categorize or separate wo are drug trainers and who are not
I'm confused
what side is burke in for example
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If it leaves the Mlands, Gural might be upset enough to write a race for same date with more $$ and let the drug trainers go elsewhere.
Bingo
Well, maybe insert "trainers that he doesn't want to compete against" instead of "drugs trainers". Synonymous.
Things get a lot easier if you can pick your competition and bias the track surface in your own favor
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If he doesn't get slots, he'll either close or turn it into B track (more than it is now) Think of NO championship meet, no stake races, just the same crap that you see the rest of the year?
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Keep it has far away from Hoosier as possible
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please someone categorize or separate wo are drug trainers and who are not
I'm confused
what side is burke in for example
Any leading trainer at any given track is a "Drug Trainer" Or any trainer with a .300 UDRS or higher is a "Drug Trainer" ask any non-handicapping better on this forum.
Learn the game Laddie 73cv.2
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They aren't bringing the Hambletonian to a piece of shit half mile track.
I know I was kidding... it's coming back to the Meadowlands trust me, Gural doesnt want his legacy to be the one who lost the Hambo, I dont care how cheap he is