Monmouth handle up slightly

Buoyed by a record-setting Haskell Invitational Day program that attracted Triple Crown winner American Pharoah, the 58-day Monmouth Park meeting that concluded Sunday showed a slight increase in daily average all-sources handle.

Haskell Day handled a Monmouth Park-record $20,024,509, eclipsing the former mark, excluding the 2007 Breeders’ Cup, of $17,642,736 set on Haskell Day in 2008.

The announced Haskell Day crowd of 60,983 also was a record, bettering the 53,638 who turned out for the 2003 Haskell.

Monmouth Park averaged $4,596,801 per day in handle this year, up a quarter of 1 percent from the $4,585,779 wagered daily on a 57-day card in 2014. Ontrack handle averaged $526,821 a day, down 2.2 percent from last season’s $538,540.

Bolstered by Haskell Day, attendance averaged 9,646 this year, up 3.8 percent from last year’s 9,296.

“Considering what we are up against, it’s hard not to call this a success,” said Dennis Drazin, the head of Darby Development, which operates the track. “We’re surrounded by jurisdictions that offer casino gaming at racetracks. We saw Saratoga put on a record-setting meet, and now Parx is offering purses that are unrivaled in the Mid-Atlantic. Yet through all that, we were able to post solid figures and set records of our own.”

Paco Lopez won his third straight Monmouth riding title with 74 wins. He has won four Monmouth titles overall.

Jorge Navarro was the meet’s leading trainer for the third consecutive year. He won 42 races.