EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. (AP) - Trainer Ray Schnittker and driver Tim Tetrick have a good thing going at the Meadowlands Pace.
Huntsville could make things even better in Saturday’s $738,550 edition of the Meadowlands Racetrack’s signature event.
Huntsville is the even-money morning-line favorite in the Crawford Farms Meadowlands Pace for 3-year-old pacers following his 2 ¼-length win over Blood Line in last week’s eliminations. The top seven finishers from the elimination advanced to the Meadowlands Pace final.
Schnittker and Tetrick won in 2010 with One More Laugh.
The rest of Saturday’s 10-horse field includes three colts that advanced directly to the final because of byes based on seasonal earnings: Downbytheseaside, Classic Pro and Miso Fast. Downbytheseaside is the race’s second choice, at 4-1.
Huntsville, the 2016 Dan Patch Award winner for best 2-year-old male pacer, has won 11 of 17 career races and never finished worse than second. He will start from post No. 4.
Tetrick has driven Huntsville in all 17 of the colt’s races. Their wins include last year’s Breeders Crown for 2-year-old male pacers at the Meadowlands and a world-record 1:49 mile in a division of last year’s International Stallion Stakes.
The 35-year-old Tetrick already has won the Meadowlands Pace four times and is tied with Ron Pierce for the second most victories in the race’s 40-year history. John Campbell, who retired last month, holds the record with seven trophies.
Downbytheseaside, trained by Brian Brown and driven by recent Hall of Fame inductee Brian Sears, has won five of seven races this year. He was third in the North America Cup, behind stablemate Fear The Dragon and runner-up Huntsville, and fifth in the Max C. Hempt Memorial on July 1 at The Downs at Mohegan Sun Pocono.
With a win in the Meadowlands Pace, Downbytheseaside and Fear The Dragon would become the second stablemates to split the Meadowlands Pace and North America Cup, joining 2002 Pace champion Mach Three and 2002 Cup winner Red River Hanover.
The field for the $738,550 Crawford Farms Meadowlands Pace for 3-year-old pacers in post order with drivers, trainers and morning line:
1, Blood Line, Mark MacDonald-Jimmy Takter, 5-1; 2, Mac’s Jackpot, David Miller-Jim Campbell, 15-1; 3, Boogie Shuffle, Scott Zeron-Mark Harder, 30-1; 4, Huntsville, Tim Tetrick-Ray Schnittker, 1-1; 5, Downbytheseaside, Brian Sears-Brian Brown, 4-1; 6, Miso Fast, Matt Kakaley-Ron Burke, 10-1; 7, Filibuster Hanover, Yannick Gingras-Ron Burke, 10-1; 8, Santafe’s Coach, Corey Callahan-Leo Iordan, 20-1; Classic Pro, Trevor Henry-Dr. Ian Moore, 15-1; 10, Talent Soup, Eric Abbatiello-Bruce Saunders, 30-1a.
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