Wagering on Thoroughbred races at U.S. tracks was up 10.3 percent in the first quarter of 2021 compared to the same quarter of last year, according to figures released by Equibase on Monday, while average handle per race in the quarter increased 8.8 percent.
The overall fatality rate in U.S. Thoroughbred flat races in 2020 declined by 7.8 percent compared to 2019, with the rate falling to its lowest level since the centralized collection of data on fatalities began in 2009, according to statistics released on Monday by The Jockey Club.
Todd Kabel, one of the most talented and successful jockeys in Canadian racing history, has died at 55.
Jim Gagliano, the president of The Jockey Club, will serve as the “interim president” of Equibase as the company conducts a search to find a permanent replacement for Jason Wilson, who will leave the company on April 2 to take a job with a top racing company, The Jockey Club said on Tuesday.
The California Horse Racing Board tabled proposed changes to the state’s strict whip rules on Tuesday, saying the measures deserve additional discussion.
Jason Wilson, the president and chief operating officer of Equibase for the past five years, has taken a job with 1/ST, the company formally known as The Stronach Group, as the chief operating officer of a new division at the company, 1/ST announced on Friday.
Joseph “Brant” Latta, who held management positions at a number of racetracks over an 18-year career in the racing industry, died Monday at his home in Fort Smith, Ark., according to family members. Latta was 60.
National Horsemen’s Benevolent and Protective Association and 11 of its local affiliates have filed a lawsuit challenging the regulatory power of a horse-racing oversight board created by federal legislation late in 2020.
Churchill Downs Inc. has voluntarily dismissed a lawsuit it filed last month in federal court in California against Thoroughbred Owners of California that was related to the fees its account-wagering company pays to racing interests in the state, according to court filings.
Top California trainer Doug O’Neill has been suspended 10 days and fined $7,500 after one of his runners at Santa Anita in October tested positive for the anesthetic lidocaine.
