All-dirt meet begins with a twilight card
LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Seems like there’s always something new going on at Churchill Downs. From perpetual remodeling of the historic grandstand and clubhouse to various modifications in pandemic protocols to changing television coverage, folks have needed a scorecard the last couple of years to keep up.
Now it’s the ongoing turf-course renovation that will give a different feel to a September meet that kicks off Thursday at 5 p.m. Eastern. Only dirt races will be carded throughout the 12-day meet, which runs through Oct. 3, with a total of 117 races on the drawing board in a racing office being tasked with making them competitive and interesting for bettors.
An all-time record-high purse structure made possible by revenues from the slots-like historical horse racing machines at nearby Trackside should make filling races a little easier than otherwise. With everyone forced to go elsewhere for nine weeks this summer because of the turf project, horsemen have been replenishing the Churchill stable area in recent days while combing through a condition book that includes maiden-specials worth $120,000 and allowances ranging from $127,000 to $148,000. (All non-claiming/starter races include sizable bonuses restricted to registered Kentucky-breds.)
Some races will fill readily, such as the two Win and You’re In events toward the Breeders’ Cup, the $300,000 Iroquois and $300,000 Pocahontas, both of them part of a big card here Saturday night. Those 1 1/16-mile fixtures for 2-year-olds are among five stakes on what will be the track’s last nighttime card of the year (first post, 6).
In all, 11 stakes are on the schedule, with probably the most important being the $400,000 Lukas Classic on Oct. 2, given that it’s being targeted by Brad Cox as the final Breeders’ Cup prep for Knicks Go, one of the favorites for the Nov. 6 BC Classic at Del Mar.
The $10 million reconstruction of the seven-furlong Churchill turf course is on schedule. Much of the subsurface is in place, but seeding won’t start until early October, so it won’t be until next spring that the new course will be available for racing. No turf racing at this meet is mitigated somewhat by the fact that local horsemen have been availing themselves to plenty of it in recent weeks at Ellis Park and Kentucky Downs, and there’ll be more when Keeneland starts its fall meet Oct. 8.
In addition, trainers lacking other options may be willing to give their turf horses a chance on the dirt, meaning there should be plenty of turf-to-dirt angles for handicappers to ponder as the meet unfolds.
The Thursday opener will be anchored by back-to-back allowances, with race 6 being a $127,000 first-level sprint that drew nine 3-year-olds and upward, and race 7 being a $134,000 second-level route that got eight fillies and mares. In all, 82 horses are on an eight-race program, including five also-eligibles.
Fox Sports once again will televise live Churchill action, either through FS1 or FS2, with Gary Stevens and Frank Lyons serving as on-site analysts. Fox replaced TVG in May 2020 as the track’s mainstream broadcasting source.
A 50 percent chance of rain is in the local forecast for Thursday, when the last few races will be run under a lighting system first put to use in 2009.
