Who do you think will win the 2023 Hambletonian? Have your say!
Elimination winner Celebrity Bambino drew post one for Saturday’s $1 million Hambletonian Stakes at The Meadowlands and was established as the 2-1 morning line favourite as he seeks to give trainer Ron Burke and driver Yannick Gingras their first wins in the trotting classic for three-year-olds.
Elim winners Celebrity Bambino and Point Of Perfect, both trained by Burke, drew for posts one through five at the draw and press conference on Tuesday, Aug. 1. They were followed by the remaining finalists in an open draw.
Celebrity Bambino battled sickness last year but won five of 12 races and finished second in the Breeders Crown. He has raced six times this year, winning two of his three most recent starts, including his Hambletonian elimination in a career-best 1:50.4.
Point Of Perfect, who won the first of last week’s two eliminations in a career-best 1:51.2, will start Saturday from post five with David Miller in the sulky. He is 6-1 on the morning line. Point Of Perfect was winless in 15 starts as a two-year-old but has won three of seven this season. The most recent horse to win the Hambletonian after not having a victory at two was Tagliabue in 1995.
Oh Well and Winners Bet, who each won a division of the Stanley Dancer Memorial on July 15 at The Meadowlands, are the second and third choices, respectively, on the morning line.
The Canadian contingent features three Ontario-sired hopefuls. Osceola drew the best of those, landing in post three for Hambletonian debuting Doug & Gregg McNair. Osceola was assessed odds of 12-1 on the morning line.
Further to the outside, 20-1 shot Southwind Coors drew post seven for Hambletonian first-timers James MacDonald and Matt Bax. Ben Baillargeon sends out his second Hambletonian finalist, Ghostly Casper. He's secured three-time Hambletonian winner Brian Sears to drive his 10-1 morning line contender from post nine.
The Hambletonian will be race 12 with a post time of 4:45 p.m. (EDT). The full field is listed below.
$1 million Hambletonian
Post - Horse - Driver - Trainer - Morning Line Odds
1. Celebrity Bambino - Yannick Gingras - Ron Burke - 2-1
2. Oh Well - Tim Tetrick - Marcus Melander - 7-2
3. Osceola - Doug McNair - Gregg McNair - 12-1
4. Winners Bet - Dexter Dunn - Domenico Cecere - 4-1
5. Point Of Perfect - David Miller - Ron Burke - 6-1
6. Up Your Deo - Ake Svanstedt - Ake Svanstedt -15-1
7. Southwind Coors - James MacDonald - Matt Bax - 20-1
8. French Wine - Andy Miller - Julie Miller - 12-1
9. Ghostly Casper - Brian Sears - Ben Baillargeon - 10-1
10. Tactical Approach - Scott Zeron - Nancy Takter - 15-1
AE1. Tuscan Prince
AE2. Little Expensive
Who do you think will win? Have your say in the current SC web poll by linking the following link: Who do you think will win the 2023 Hambletonian?