Oaklawn to offer Stay Until May trainers' bonus

Oaklawn Park in Hot Springs, Ark., will institute a new trainer bonus program during the meet that opens Dec. 9, the track announced Wednesday. The bonus is a collaboration between the track and the Arkansas Horsemen’s Benevolent and Protective Association.

The “Stay Until May” bonus will pay trainers between $200 to $250 for every “non-stakes starter” that fails to run first, second, or third. In order to be eligible for the bonus, trainers must start at least two horses during the final 14 dates of the season, with one of those during the final nine dates.

During the course of the meet, records of bonus earnings will be kept for payouts at the end of the season, according to a representative of Oaklawn. The meet runs through May 6.

The bonus will be worth $200 through April 2, and for the final month of the meet, $250. It’s projected the total bonus payout could reach $750,000.

“We’ve always taken great pride in the fact that Oaklawn has among the largest fields in American racing,” Pat Pope, racing secretary at Oaklawn, said in a press release. “And, while the trainers of the top finishers are richly rewarded, this enables us to also show appreciation to trainers who help make our races go even if their starters finish fourth or further back.”

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Pope said the idea for the bonus emerged last May during meetings between Oaklawn and the Arkansas HBPA.

“The Arkansas HBPA felt there were several reasons to endorse this bonus program, but mainly we wanted to try to help the trainers with the small to mid-sized operations,” Bill Walmsley, president of the Arkansas HBPA, said in a press release. “The racing industry is a lot healthier with these trainers in business. We’re fortunate at Oaklawn to have a healthy purse account, so it seemed like a good time to implement this program and hopefully it will encourage horsemen to stay until the end.”

Purse sat Oaklawn are projected to average a record $735,000 a day. Maiden special weight races will start at $90,000 and allowance races will be worth more than $100,000.

The first condition book is posted on the track’s website. The track’s deadline for stall applications is Oct. 13. The stable area opens Nov. 1 and the first day of training is Nov. 5.

Oaklawn will open in December for the second year in a row, after testing out the schedule at the end of 2021. The track had traditionally started its meet in January.