MILTON, March 6, 2020 – Woodbine Entertainment today released the lists of eligible horses for its 2020 major stakes, including the $1 million Pepsi North America Cup. The Pepsi North America Cup, harness racing’s richest race for three-year-old pacers, has attracted 77 nominations, holding steady to last year’s 82. Metro Pace and Breeders Crown champion Tall Dark Stranger leads the list of eligible sophomores on the heels of his O’Brien and Dan Patch Award winning two-year-old season. The Pepsi North America Cup list also includes standouts Capt Midnight, Elver Hanover and Papi Rob Hanover. Eliminations for the Pepsi North America Cup are scheduled for Saturday, June 13 and the $1 million final will take place the following week on Saturday, June 20. The stakes have been increased for this year’s William Wellwood Memorial, which led to a major spike in nominations. A total of 195 rookie trotters have been made eligible, up from 154 in 2019. The purse for this year’s Wellwood Memorial has been increased to $610,000 (estimated) and the winner will also receive a slot in the inaugural Mohawk Million (valued at $110,000). The rich event for two-year-old trotters will take place on Saturday, September 12, two-weeks prior to the Mohawk Million on Saturday, September 26. The Metro Pace, harness racing’s richest race for two-year-old pacers, will also take place on Saturday, September 26. The marquee race for rookies has attracted 191 nominations, the same number as 2019. Another event that saw a notable increase is the Canadian Pacing Derby. A total of 56 older pacers have been nominated to Canada’s oldest Standardbred stakes race, up from 37 a year ago. The Maple Leaf Trot received 46 nominations, headlined by international superstar Bold Eagle. The legendary French-trotter captured the Breeders Crown last October and could be poised for a return to Woodbine Mohawk Park in 2020. To view the full lists of eligible horses for all 2020 major stakes, click here. A sustaining payment for all major stakes is due March 16, 2020. Full information regarding stakes payments and eligible horses can be found by visiting www.Woodbine.com/Mohawk/Horsepeople/. Share This:Share
