Odds On Racing - Harness Racing

Hambo & Oaks Elims Set for Saturday

July 22, 2008

Undefeated Deweycheatumnhowe tops the list of 23 trotters in pursuit the $1.7 million Hambletonian at the Meadowlands.

A trio of $70,000 elimination races on Saturday, July 26 will decide the 10 finalists that will compete for the $1.5 million jackpot on August 2. The top three finishers in each elimination, plus the fourth-place finisher with the highest career earnings, will advance to the Hambletonian Final. Post time is 7 p.m. on July 26.

Deweycheatumnhowe, trained and driven by Ray Schnittker, enters the Hambletonian eliminations with a perfect 13-race record. He drew post four in the second of the three $70,000 eliminations, race five. In his final Hambletonian prep, he cruised to a 1:53.2 victory in the $350,000 Stanley Dancer Memorial on July 11. The defending divisional champion was perfect in 10 starts in 2007 and set a single-season earnings record of $936,191 for a 2-year-old trotting colt. The colt is three-for-three this season for Schnittker and co-owners Ted Gewertz, Charles Iannazzo, Frank Baldassare and the Deweycheatumnhowe Stable [Walnut Hall and Jerry Silva].

Emerging star Crazed headlines the third elimination, race eight, from the rail. In his final Hambletonian tune-up, Crazed crushed the competition by 9-1/2 lengths in 1:52.4 last week at the Meadowlands. Trained by Frank Antonacci, Crazed has won three of four starts this season.

Snow White leads the class of 21 fillies who will contest the $850,000 Hambletonian Oaks.

She will start from post six in the second of three $35,000 elimination races that will decide the field for the $750,000 Oaks Final on August 2. As with the colt's event, the top three in each elimination and richest fourth-place finisher advance to the final.

Despite a rocky start to the season, Snow White breezed to a decisive 1:54 victory in the $300,000 Del Miller Memorial for trainer Kevin Lare and driver John Campbell on July 11. She finished 2007 as the fastest [1:52.4] and richest [$1,252,646] freshman filly trotter in history, punctuating her 11-for-13 season with a Breeders Crown trophy.