Racetracks that received subsidies from slot machines in 2010 generated on average only two-fifths of the betting that non-subsidized tracks generated even though they distributed nearly equivalent levels of average daily purses, according to unofficial statistics assembled by Daily Racing Form.
The Oklahoma Thoroughbred Association, which has represented the state’s breeders since 1958, will turn that duty over to the Thoroughbred Racing Association of Oklahoma, a branch of the National Horsemen’s Benevolent and Protective Association, beginning Monday.
The American Graded Stakes Committee has approved a measure to require that the diuretic furosemide be banned in 2-year-old stakes in 2012 for the races to remain eligible for the grades it assigns, the committee said on Wednesday, upping the ante in a struggle that is pitting many owners and breeders against trainers on the issue of the race day use of drugs.
There is an increasing likelihood that takeout rates on some exotic bets will be lower at California tracks this fall, but executives with the racetracks and the Thoroughbred Owners of California have yet to finalize the details.
England’s Tattersalls sale company has filed suit against California-based Thoroughbred owner Jeffrey DeHaven, alleging he has not yet paid for the 3-year-old filly Singapore Lilly.
The slide in wagering on horse races held at U.S. racetracks decelerated significantly during the month of July, falling only 2.9 percent compared with wagering in July of last year, according to figures released by Equibase on Thursday.
Churchill Downs Inc. continued to pay down its long-term debt during a second quarter in which the company posted record revenues, underlining the company’s strength at a time when the racing industry is facing serious economic pressures.
Churchill Downs Inc. had net income of $40.7 million in the second quarter of 2011, a 45-percent increase over second-quarter earnings last year, largely on the strength of higher revenue from the company’s casino and account-wagering operations.
Penn National Gaming Inc., one of the largest racetrack and casino companies in the U.S., had net income of $76 million in the second quarter of 2011, a sharp increase over second-quarter net income last year of $9.2 million.
Officials of the Jockey Club and the consulting firm McKinsey and Company will present the results of an economic study that McKinsey recently completed at the Jockey Club’s annual Round Table Conference on Matters Pertaining to Racing on Aug. 14 in Saratoga Springs.
