Michael Merton leads harness drivers at Monticello Raceway at midway point of season

Michael Merton leads the way in driver wins at Monticello Raceway at the mid-point of the 2024 season.

Michael Merton has 131 wins, Jim Taggart Jr. has 105, Gregory Merton has 91 and Bruce Aldrich Jr. has 89 among the most successful drivers. As a result, Michael Merton has earned $494,807 in purses, Taggart $458,085 and Aldrich $407,168, the only drivers to reach $400,000 thus far.

Laura Aldrich leads the Monticello trainers with 57 wins and $252,689 in purses. She is closely followed by Gary Messenger (43 wins) at $239,542 and Daniel Gill (42 wins) at $193,649.

More: Goshen Historic Track harness racing weekend entries, results

There have been 801 races with at least four horses entered – post-position one has 181 wins, position two has 157, position three has 135 and position four has 111.

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Monticello statistics

Driver wins: Michael Merton 131; Jim Taggart Jr. 105; Gregory Merton 91; Bruce Aldrich Jr. 89; McGwire Sowers 61; Kyle DiBenedetto 60; Thomas Merton 55; Fern Paquet Jr. 43; Adam Moeykens 36; Jim Devaux 33 (41 drivers have posted at least one victory)

Driver purses: Michael Merton $494,807; Jim Taggart Jr. $458,085; Bruce Aldrich Jr. $407,168; Gregory Merton $337,205; Thomas Merton $334,253; Kyle DiBenedetto $328,001; McGwire Sowers $288,033; Adam Moeykens $210,326; Fern Paquet Jr. $206,797; Jim Devaux $161,859 (41 drivers have posted at least one victory)

Trainer wins: Laura Aldrich 57; Gary Messenger 43; Daniel Gill 42; Monica Eriksen 38; McGwire Sowers 33; Arthur Green 31; Robert Lounsbury 26; Richard Campolong 25; Jim Doherty Jr. 25; Andrew Adamczyk 21; Shane Taggart 20

Trainer purses: Laura Aldrich $252,689; Gary Messenger $239,542; Daniel Gill $193,649; Monica Eriksen $130,429; McGwire Sowers $130,680; Arthur Green $124,919; Robert Lounsbury $115,597; Richard Campolong $136,712; Jim Doherty Jr. $105,255; Andrew Adamczyk $92,618; Shane Taggart $57,797

Yonkers statistics

Driver wins: Jason Bartlett 200; George Brennan 153; Yannick Gingras 142; Matt Kakaley 141; Brent Holland 120; Jordan Stratton 101

Driver purses: Jason Bartlett $3,773,930; Yannick Gingras $3,067,895; Matt Kakaley $2,736,745; George Brennan $2,722,504; Jordan Stratton $2,271626; Brent Holland $2,122,160

Trainer wins: Per Engblom 109; Travis Alexander 108; Jennifer Bongiorno 61; Jared Bako 55; Scott Di Domenico 55; Ricky Bucci 51

Trainer purses: Per Engblom $2,251,666; Travis Alexander $1,968,015; Ron Burke $1,205,690; Scott Di Domenico $1,144,678; Ricky Bucci $1,105,660; Jennifer Bongiorno $1,022,530; Jared Bako $1,016,780

Meadowlands statistics

Driver wins: David Miller 75; Andrew McCarthy 63; Todd McCarthy 58; Dexter Dunn 49; Yannick Gingras 40; Jordan Stratton 37; Jason Bartlett 33; Scott Zeron 33

Driver purses: Andrew McCarthy $1,084,640; David Miller $1,016,841; Dexter Dunn $1,002,661; Todd McCarthy $999,566; Yannick Gingras $767,279; Scott Zeron $727,083; Jordan Stratton $521,754; Jason Bartlett $459,507

Trainer wins: Per Engblom 29; Izzy Estrada 26; Jeff Cullipher 25; Nancy Takter 24; Tony Alagna 20; Cory Stratton 19

Trainer wins: Tony Alagna $637559; Nancy Takter $486,566; Per Engblom $448,426; Jeff Cullipher $381,700; Izzy Estrada $200,966; Cory Stratton $168,545

This article originally appeared on Times Herald-Record: Michael Merton leads harness drivers at Monticello Raceway at midway point of season