Breeders' Cup announces rule changes for 2018 BC Betting Challenge

Following the controversy surrounding last year’s event, The Breeders’ Cup on Thursday announced rule changes for the 2018 Breeders’ Cup Betting Challenge, racing’s largest live money tournament, which will be held on November 2-3 at Churchill Downs and at participating simulcast and advance-deposit wagering sites.

The new rules reinforce the focus on making all players compete under the same set of guidelines. Players will be required to wager $600 per race on a minimum of 10 of the 14 Breeders’ Cup World Championships races over the two days (three of the five Breeders’ Cup races on Friday and on seven of the nine Breeders’ Cup races on Saturday).

Unlike last year’s rules, which featured no meaningful penalty for avoiding a minimum, the new rules will be strict. If a player fails to make one required wager, they will be penalized 10,000 points. If a player fails to make more than one required wager, they will be disqualified. Additionally, a player must wager a minimum of $7,500 over the two-day tournament.

The revised rules also provide further details on how collusion between players is defined and interpreted. Among other things, the new language clearly states that all players must make their final selection independently of every other player in the BCBC and that they are prohibited from coordinating their play with other players. If Breeders’ Cup or the host track determines, in their sole discretion, that collusion occurred, the participating players will be disqualified.

The changes were developed in consultation with the Breeders’ Cup Wagering Committee, which was created to provide tournament player input on the conduct of the BCBC and related matters. The Wagering Committee is co-chaired by Breeders’ Cup Directors Craig Bernick and Mike Rogers. Player representatives include Paul Matties, Joe Appelbaum, Jonathon Kinchen, and Tom Quigley.

“We believe that these new rules will strengthen the overall structure and integrity of the BCBC and provide a fun and highly competitive environment for all players,” said Bernick, co-chairman of the Wagering Committee and Breeders’ Cup director. “We greatly benefitted from the valuable input and deep expertise of the horseplayers on our committee and thank them for their time and effort to help us improve the BCBC and maintain its positon as racing’s premier live-money tournament. Additionally, we look forward to working with board members and the player representatives to improve and enhance more aspects of the Breeders’ Cup wagering experience for our fan base.”

As for enforcement, the BCBC will sanction an integrity official to assist in monitoring the tournament. The identity of this official is not yet known.

“Breeders’ Cup is currently in discussions with third-parties to assist in auditing and enforcing the new rules,” Breeders’ Cup CEO Craig Fravel said. “We anticipate the individual to be independent in order to create greater transparency and remove any possibility of a conflict of interest.”

Another development involves the tournament’s aftermath. In an effort to provide complete transparency surrounding tournament play, following the conclusion of the BCBC, Breeders’ Cup will publish all tournament wagers made by players who participated. This may prove to be the biggest deterrent to collusive play of all.

Individual players will still be allowed to play two entries at this year’s event. “The ability to purchase or earn two entries is open to everyone,” Fravel said. “It is a popular option and players enjoy it. Also, we have already had a player win multiple entries, and we anticipate others will do the same, and we want to be fair to those players.”

Additionally, there will be no limits on how players are allowed to play their two entries. “We adopted new rules that we believe are fair and easily interpreted and enforced,” Fravel continued. “It would be nearly impossible to determine whether, and to what extent, an individual player was playing his two entries independently or collectively.”

“As one of the horseplayer representatives on the Breeders’ Cup Wagering Committee, I am encouraged by the positive changes made to the BCBC rules and believe they will result in a more competitive and transparent tournament,” said Paul Matties, a member of the wagering committee and winner of the 2016 NTRA National Horseplayers Championship.

The complete 2018 BCBC rules can be found here.