Jockey Jose Velez Jr. had North East Bound near the front of the pack from the start as 47-1 longshot Lord Sterling took the early lead and held it through early fractions of :22.54 and :45.47. But Velez steered his horse three wide just before the three-quarter mark, took the lead and then pulled away from the rest of the pack down the stretch to win easily.Lord Sterling held on to finish second, while Where's Taylor took third. Talk's Cheap, Valhol, Dancin Rahy, With Anticipation, 8-5 favorite Vision and Verse, Rize, and Leave It to Beezer completed the order of finish.North East Bound, who was sent off at 10-1, paid $22.80, $9.20, and $5.20. The winning exacta was worth $537, while the trifecta returned $4,133.80.
North East Bound is trained by Bill Perry and owned by Julian DeMarco and Richard Disano. The horse scored the biggest win of his career, earning $240,000 Saturday night, with overall winnings of $756,040, including $468,000 this year. In his most recent race prior to the Meadowlands Cup, North East Bound won the Cliff Hanger Handicap (gr. IIIT) by 2 3/4 lengths on the Meadowlands turf course. Previously, he finished fourth in the Fourstardave Handicap (gr. IIT) after winning the $70,000 Battlefield Stakes. He was bred in Kentucky by his owners and Scott E. Ricker. (Chart, Equibase)