Wagering on races held at U.S. racetracks during the first quarter this year was up 6.2 percent despite a 3.4 percent drop in the number of races held, according to figures released on Thursday by Equibase, the best three-month showing for handle figures in the economically challenged racing industry for some time.
Hazel Park Raceway in southeast Michigan was shuttered Thursday after ownership group Hartman & Tyner announced that the property was in the process of being sold, just under a month before the scheduled opening day of the live race meet.
For the second time in six months, Keeneland Race Course will open its race meet with new takeout rates in place. But this time around, the silence greeting the decision is golden.
Average daily handle at Turfway Park this winter was down 9 percent over corresponding dates from the previous winter, according to figures released Wednesday by the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission.
Harry "The Hat" Hacek, an agent for top jockeys in California and Illinois, died Saturday in Hot Springs, Ark., his daughter, Brittney Hacek, said on Tuesday. Hacek was 71.
Larry Wolken, who headed the racetrack concessions company Turf Catering for decades and was a Thoroughbred owner, died on March 30 in Hot Springs, Ark. He was 87.
A late scratch in the third race at Mahoning Valley Race Course in Ohio led to a brief bet-processing outage at several tracks in the U.S. on Monday, delaying payouts and betting services at the tracks for approximately half an hour, according to officials with knowledge of the problem.
The Permanently Disabled Jockeys' Fund, a non-profit that provides monthly benefits to disabled riders, will hold its first-ever telethon on April 8, with jockeys appearing live on TVG throughout the afternoon and evening to raise money for the charity.
A provision in the New York state budget that would have allowed the New York Racing Association to run at night at Belmont Park in Elmont on Long Island has been taken off the table due to objections from the Standardbred industry, according to sources.
Claude P. Williams, a former columnist for Daily Racing Form who went on to hold key positions at racing commissions in Louisiana and Alabama, died Saturday due to brain injuries suffered in a recent fall.
