Carl Milstein Memorial 2026 Betting Guide: Melillo Chases a Breakthrough at Northfield Park
Northfield Park's biggest night of the harness season arrives Saturday, August 15, when the $300,000 Grade 2 Carl Milstein Memorial headlines a stakes packed fifteen race card. First post is 6:00pm ET, and the Milstein goes as race twelve alongside two $100,000 undercard invitationals, the Tom Aldrich President's Trot and the Myron Charna President's Pace. Nine three year old pacers go to post in the Milstein, with Ron Burke's Melillo sent off as the 7/5 favorite by Northfield director of racing Dave Bianconi.
What the Carl Milstein Memorial Means at Northfield Park
The Milstein is named for Carl Milstein, who bought into Northfield Park in 1972 alongside a group of partners that included George Steinbrenner, then took over as owner and operator in 1984 and ran the track until his death in 1999. His son Brock Milstein succeeded him as chairman and now also chairs Milstein Entertainment, majority owner of the Hard Rock Rocksino Northfield Park. Running as an invitational for the first time this year, the race has become one of the sport's key stops for three year old pacers on the way toward the Little Brown Jug. The last two Jug champions, Wiggle It Jiggleit and Limelight Beach, both raced in the Milstein first.
There is extra weight to Saturday's undercard too. Tom Aldrich, the longtime Northfield general manager and later chief operating officer who partnered with Carl Milstein and Myron Charna to build the track into what it is today, passed away earlier this year. The $100,000 trot named in his honor runs on the same card, alongside the Charna Pace named for his fellow Northfield builder.
Carl Milstein Memorial Field and Fractional Odds
Nine sophomore pacers go to post for the $300,000 Milstein. Melillo leads a field that also includes a pair of Ontario shippers and a second live runner from the powerhouse Burke barn. The full field, posts, drivers, trainers and morning line prices are set out in the table below.
Melillo, a son of Sweet Lou out of Rosemary Rose, arrives off back to back runner up finishes to stablemate Al Papi, first in the Delvin Miller Adios elimination and then in the final, where Al Papi ran 1:48.1 with Melillo a head back after chasing him to the wire. Add in a fourth in the Meadowlands Pace, a fourth in the MGM Grand Messenger Stakes, and a fifth in the North America Cup, and Melillo has spent the whole season knocking on the door of a first Grand Circuit win with Ronnie Wrenn Jr. in the bike.
Aces And Cinches is the second choice in the market at 4/1, also for Ron Burke, giving the barn two live runners with Yannick Gingras taking the lines. Ballroom Affair sits next at 5/1 for driver Dan Noble and trainer Joe Bongiorno, while Borderline Mobby rounds out the front end of the market at 9/2 off two wins and three seconds in his last five starts, including an Ontario Sires Stakes Gold victory, for Ontario trainer Dave Menary.
Two shippers from Ontario give the Milstein a genuine cross border feel. Borderline Mobby leaves from post six for Menary, and Redland Rocket Man goes from post seven for John Pentland off the back of a Canadian record 1:48.2 win in an Ontario Sires Stakes Gold at Grand River Raceway. Todd McCarthy takes the lines on Redland Rocket Man, a son of Bulldog Hanover, at 8/1.
Further back in the market, Fire Run is 10/1 for trainer Erv Miller and driver Atlee Bender, Myboypank is 6/1 for Tony Alagna and Marvin Luna, C Millertimeagain is 12/1 for Molly Gara and Corey Callahan, and Tsunami Seas, a son of Downbytheseaside trained by Virgil Morgan Jr. and driven by David Miller, is the longest price in the field at 20/1.
| Post | Horse | Driver | Trainer | Odds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Fire Run | Atlee Bender | Erv Miller | 10/1 |
| 2 | Melillo | Ronnie Wrenn Jr. | Ron Burke | 7/5 |
| 3 | Ballroom Affair | Dan Noble | Joe Bongiorno | 5/1 |
| 4 | C Millertimeagain | Corey Callahan | Molly Gara | 12/1 |
| 5 | Myboypank | Marvin Luna | Tony Alagna | 6/1 |
| 6 | Borderline Mobby | Dan Noble | Dave Menary | 9/2 |
| 7 | Redland Rocket Man | Todd McCarthy | John Pentland | 8/1 |
| 8 | Tsunami Seas | David Miller | Virgil Morgan Jr. | 20/1 |
| 9 | Aces And Cinches | Yannick Gingras | Ron Burke | 4/1 |
Undercard: Tom Aldrich President's Trot and Myron Charna President's Pace
Saturday's card does not stop at the Milstein. The $100,000 Tom Aldrich President's Trot for Ohio sired trotters four years old and up, and the $100,000 Myron Charna President's Pace for Ohio sired pacers in the same age bracket, both run as part of the same fifteen race program. Last year's editions went to Ferretti in the Aldrich Trot and Paris's Dragon in the Charna Pace, while Prince Hal Hanover took the 2025 Milstein itself. Northfield has scheduled an all stakes Pick 4 starting in race eight and a second Pick 4 beginning in race eleven, tying the undercard and the Milstein together for bettors chasing the bigger pools.
How We're Looking at the Milstein
Melillo's price reflects a colt who keeps finishing in the money against the best sophomore pacers in North America, but two straight runner up finishes to Al Papi are a reminder he has not beaten open Grand Circuit company yet this year. Aces And Cinches gives the Burke barn a live second string at a bigger number, and with Gingras in the bike we like using both Burke runners underneath in exotics rather than banking everything on the favorite alone. Borderline Mobby's recent form, two wins and three seconds in five starts, makes him the play among the price runners if the pace sets up for a closer on Northfield's half mile oval.
Bet the Milstein at MyWinners
Nine sophomore pacers, a 7/5 favorite still chasing his first Grand Circuit win, and two live shippers from Ontario make Saturday's Carl Milstein Memorial one of the more competitive renewals in years, with the Aldrich Trot and Charna Pace adding two more $100,000 stakes to the same card.
Bet online at app.mywinners.com, on the MyWinners: Racing & Sports app on iOS or Android, or go here to find your nearest MyWinners or Winners venue in CT.
Frequently Asked Questions
The $300,000 Grade 2 Carl Milstein Memorial goes Saturday, August 15, 2026, at Northfield Park in Northfield, Ohio, with first post for the fifteen race card at 6:00pm ET.
Melillo, trained by Ron Burke and driven by Ronnie Wrenn Jr., was installed as the 7/5 morning line favorite by Northfield director of racing Dave Bianconi.
The same Saturday program at Northfield Park also features the $100,000 Tom Aldrich President's Trot and the $100,000 Myron Charna President's Pace, both invitationals for Ohio sired four year old and up standardbreds.
The race honors Carl Milstein, who owned and operated Northfield Park from 1984 until his death in 1999 and helped build it into one of harness racing's most successful venues.
You can bet the Milstein and the rest of Saturday's Northfield Park card at app.mywinners.com or on the MyWinners: Racing & Sports app for iOS and Android.
