Oaklawn closes 2023-24 meet with 5.5 percent gain in average daily handle

HOT SPRINGS, Ark. – Oaklawn Park closed a memorable meet Sunday, with a more than 5 percent increase in average daily handle and the distinction of its stakes program producing the winners of this year’s Kentucky Derby and Kentucky Oaks.

Mystik Dan won the Southwest Stakes at Oaklawn and was third in its Arkansas Derby in his starts preceding his victory in the Kentucky Derby on Saturday. Thorpedo Anna won the Fantasy – which was upgraded in status to a Grade 2 for 2024 – one race out from her win in the Kentucky Oaks.

"How extraordinary is that?," said Lou Cella, president of Oaklawn. "It really is a testament to how far our racing program has come over the last decade. To have these horses win the Oaks win the Derby, we are proving to racing nation that everything to the Oaks, Derby, you gotta go to Arkansas.

"And by the way, so many of our horses on the undercard did well. They were competitive for both days, in every single race."

Oaklawn handled an average $7,037,780 per day on its races during the 64-date season, with the track canceling after one race on Jan. 7. The number is up 5.5 percent from the corresponding 68-date meet a year ago, when average daily handle was $6.6 million. The numbers were compiled by Daily Racing Form.

Oaklawn regularly drew large crowds, but the track does not charge admission to its facilities as it now includes a hotel and casino.

Purses averaged a record $901,921 per card, up substantially from $711,529 during the corresponding meet a year ago, according to Daily Racing Form figures.

The average number of starters per race was 9.34, up 7 percent from 8.71 last season. There were 501 claims during the season, for $10.6 million in transactions, according to Oaklawn figures.

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Oaklawn’s strong meet came despite challenges from the weather. The track lost five dates due to a winter snowstorm and also experienced an extensive amount of rain right up to the final card of the meet. Of the 631 races run this season, 235 were conducted over wet tracks, according to statistics compiled by Oaklawn and Daily Racing Form.

Oaklawn made up for the lost dates by adding two cards – which included extending the meet by a day to Sunday – and also adding races to its existing cards.
Flurry Racing Stable won the owner title for the first time with 26 wins from 81 starts. The outfit, headed by Staton Flurry, had stable earnings of $782,894. The leading owner by earnings was Winchell Thoroughbreds with $922,342.

Steve Asmussen won the training title with 71 wins from 461 starters. His stable also led all barns in purse earnings with $6.6 million. Oaklawn announced Asmussen’s win count equals the single-season record for trainer wins at Oaklawn set in 2003 by Cole Norman. During the 2003 meet, Oaklawn raced 49 dates. Asmussen holds the record for Oaklawn training titles with 13.

Kenny McPeek, who trains both Mystik Dan and Thorpedo Anna, was the second leading trainer this meet at Oaklawn.

Jockey Cristian Torres won the riding title for the second year in a row with 82 wins from 457 mounts. He also led all riders in mount earnings with $6.2 million.

As for the 3-year-old program next season, it will be finalized in the near future, Cella said.

"We always wait until after the Derby and Triple Crown and see how everyone does," he said. "I can tell you right now, we were flirting with bringing our Derby back maybe four weeks, maybe back to three weeks, but we just proved that five weeks is a pretty good deal."

Cella said the Arkansas Derby's purse also would remain at $1.5 million, which it was boosted to for 2024.

"Our [3-year-old] stakes will pretty much stay exactly the same," Cella said. "We might have an increase here or there."

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