Kentucky Downs kicks off seven-day meet with Tapit Stakes

It’s that time of year again.

Time for horsemen and fans alike to revisit the unique aspects of a racetrack plunked down in the middle of nowhere, one providing a welcome respite from the day-to-day grind of American racing.

Time, especially, for jaw-drops and double-takes when a horseplayer sees the purses at Kentucky Downs, where the 2022 meet begins Thursday with a 10-race program comprised mostly of full fields.

Indeed, all the quirks and charms of Kentucky Downs will be on full display for the next two weeks when the rural turf-only track straddling the Kentucky-Tennessee border hosts a seven-day meet expected to once again break its own impressive records for purses and wagering handle.

The seven dates – the most for Kentucky Downs since 2003 – are Sept. 1, 3, 4, 8, 10, 11, and 14, and during that time, everyone will reacquaint themselves with the nuances of a track that over the last quarter-century has risen from curiosity to powerhouse.

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“We look for the race meet to be largely more of the same,” said Ted Nicholson, the track’s vice president for racing. “In the case of Kentucky Downs, that’s become a very good thing – record purses, full fields, low takeout, the best jockeys and trainers in the country, and the best extended turf racing outside of Europe.”

Daily first post is 12:25 p.m. Central, except for Sept. 10, when the richest card of the meet will start at 11:30 a.m.

Fueled primarily by the historical horse racing machines that have generated year-round revenues for more than a decade at the Mint Gaming Hall located near the quarter pole, the Kentucky Downs purse structure is best illustrated by maiden specials being worth as much as $150,000, and first- and second-level allowances going for $160,000 and $170,000. In all, purse payouts are projected to surpass $18 million, with some $10.7 million going to 17 stakes.

The stakes schedule now includes at least three $1 million races – the Grade 3 Mint Million on Saturday, followed by the Grade 2 Kentucky Turf Cup and Grade 2 FanDuel Turf Sprint on Sept. 10. Three more Sept. 10 races – the Grade 3 Ladies Turf, Grade 3 Ladies Sprint, and Grade 2 Franklin-Simpson – also will have a $1 million purse if a Grade 1-winning horse is in the field. The Turf Cup and Turf Sprint are both Win and You’re In events toward the Nov. 4-5 Breeders’ Cup at Keeneland, with both being televised on CNBC.

The Thursday opener drew a whopping 165 entries for the 10 races, including also-eligibles and exclusions. The feature is the $400,000 Tapit, a mile and 70-yard race restricted to horses that have not won an open stakes in 2022.

“We ought to fit very well in there,” trainer Paulo Lobo said of the likely Tapit favorite In Love, who less than a year ago became a Grade 1 winner by capturing the Keeneland Turf Mile. “He’s coming into this in very good shape. I am very happy with him.”

Lobo, like many of his training colleagues, enjoys the change of pace afforded by a trip to Kentucky Downs – as well he should. Last September, Lobo not only won the restricted TVG with In Love, he also won the track’s marquee race, the Grade 2 Kentucky Turf Cup, with the since-retired Imperador.

“It’s a fun place,” he said with a laugh early Monday from his Thoroughbred training center base in Lexington, Ky.

In Love, with Alex Achard riding, was assigned post 12 in an oversubscribed lineup of older horses. Lobo said he was tempted to cross-enter the 6-year-old gelding in the Mint Million but was more than likely to keep him in the Tapit.

As a Brazilian-bred, In Love will be competing for just half of the Tapit purse because he’s ineligible for the $200,000 in bonuses from the Kentucky Thoroughbred Development Fund. All Kentucky Downs purses include those supplements, with as much as 50 percent restricted to registered Kentucky-breds. The vast majority of any given race tends to be comprised of eligible runners, and as a prime example, In Love is the only non-Kentucky-bred among the 15 Tapit entries.

The top challengers to In Love in the Tapit (race 9, 4:57 p.m.) include Atone (post 5, Tyler Gaffalione) and Megacity (post 11, Ricardo Santana Jr.), both trained by Mike Maker – easily the all-time leading trainer in track history in wins and stable earnings – while Floriform (post 6, Brian Hernandez Jr.) and Ramsey Solution (post 1, Edgard Zayas) are among the more capable fringe players in a lineup that will be limited to 12 starters.

Larry Collmus will be back in the announcer’s stand.

This will be the fourth meet for Kentucky Downs with Ron Winchell and Marc Falcone as owners. The track has changed hands several times since its 1990 founding as Dueling Grounds.

The opening-day weather forecast for Franklin, Ky., calls for sunshine and highs in the mid-80s.