Hazel Park opens 40-day meet Friday

The 2015 meet at Hazel Park Raceway brings with it a sense of stability not seen in Michigan’s Thoroughbred industry for quite some time.

The northwest Detroit-area track switched its focus from harness racing last year to become the state’s primary Thoroughbred venue, ending a 30-year hiatus for flat racing on the grounds. Hazel Park is Michigan’s fourth home for Thoroughbred racing since 2007 and was the only track left standing after Mount Pleasant Meadows shut down last winter and Northville Downs abandoned plans to convert from Standardbreds in the middle of 2014.

When treading such unstable waters, having the big things in place ahead of time, like a solid racing calendar and stakes schedule, can be quite the luxury.

Hazel Park will kick off a 40-day meet Friday for Thoroughbreds, Quarter Horses, and Arabians. Live racing will be held Fridays and Saturdays through Sept. 12, with first post each night at 7:30 Eastern.

“I think it’ll be bigger and better than it was in 2014,” said Ladd Biro, Hazel Park’s director of racing. “The interest that we’ve had by way of horsemen wanting to race here in 2015 is greater than what we had in 2014. Last year, I think there was a lot of wait-and-see approach taken, and we did get it done. We got the season under our belt, and I think the folks that raced here were quite pleased.”

Shane Spiess, Robert Gorham, James Jackson, and Richard Rettele, Hazel Park’s top four trainers by wins last year, all have entries on opening night. Angel Stanley and Ricardo Barrios, the track’s leading riders of 2014, are slated to return, as are regulars Brittany VandenBerg, Mike Holmes, and Glenmore Mayhew. T.D. Houghton, who recently topped the jockey standings at Mahoning Valley Race Course, is also expected to make regular appearances at the meet.

Hazel Park races over a five-furlong oval, making it one of a handful of bullrings remaining in the Midwest. The surface was met with positive reviews from horsemen during its comeback season, and Biro said the praise continued when the horses returned to the track this spring.

“The track surface has been outstanding, and that’s probably been our biggest selling point,” Biro said. “There’s one word that repeatedly comes up regarding the track condition, and that was ‘perfect.’ ”

The stakes calendar once again will be modest, highlighted by the six-race Michigan Sire Stakes card Sept. 12. Purses have not yet been determined for the Sire Stakes races, restricted to Michigan-sired runners foaled in any state, but they have held steady at $50,000 each in recent years.

The rest of the stakes schedule will consist of $20,000 affairs for Michigan-breds, including a set of preps for each of the six Sire Stakes divisions Aug. 22.