Charles Town adds dates, boosts stakes purses for 2020

The West Virginia Racing Commission on Tuesday approved Charles Town’s 2020 racing schedule, which includes added racing dates, higher purses for a number of stakes, and three additional afternoon programs.

Charles Town will race 173 dates in 2020, an increase of nine over what it was granted a year ago. As usual, the centerpiece of the meet will be Grade 2 Charles Town Classic, which will offer a purse of $1 million, the same as in 2019.

There will be eight supporting stakes on the card, one more than this year. The newly created $100,000 Book Review, a seven-furlong race for 3-year-old fillies, joins the Classic lineup.

The Dance for Bristol, a seven-furlong race for fillies and mares, has had its purse increased from $100,000 to $150,000 and is now the richest supporting stakes on the Classic card, which will have a first post of 12:30 p.m. Eastern on April 18.

Traditionally, Charles Town Classic Day is the only afternoon program of the season, but next year there will also be day racing on Mother’s Day (May 10), Father’s Day (June 21), and New Year’s Eve.

For the first time since the Mid-Atlantic Thoroughbred Championships were restarted in 2018, Charles Town will be part of the series. The Dance to Bristol, Russell Road, and Robert Hilton Memorial on the Classic undercard will all be MATCH races.

The Grade 3, $300,000 Charles Town Oaks is the second richest race of the meet and one of seven stakes on the Sept. 19 Race for the Ribbon program.

Other stakes with improved purses include the Russell Road and Misty Bennett Pink Ribbon, both of which received a $25,000 increase to $100,000. Additionally, all West Virginia-accredited stakes have had their values boosted from $50,000 to $75,000.

The West Virginia Breeders’ Classics are scheduled to be held on Oct. 10. As is typical, the purses of those races will be announced at a later date.