Turfway: Kentucky Cup races reinstated; WinStar to sponsor event

Turfway Park officials announced Thursday that the Kentucky Cup series will return to the fall meet after a one-year hiatus, with WinStar Farm as a new presenting sponsor.

All five Kentucky Cup events are being revived, led by the Grade 2, $200,000 Classic for 3-year-olds and upward. The series is set for Sept. 24 at the Florence, Ky., track.

After the Classic, the other races all are $100,000 – the Distaff, Sprint, Juvenile, and Juvenile Fillies.

The Kentucky Cup had been run to wide acclaim since 1994 before the two 2-year-old races were dropped following their 2008 runnings. While the other three races remained for the 2009 program, the series was dropped entirely last year, owing to the track’s well-documented business woes.

As a means of allotting more in purse money to the Kentucky Cup, Turfway also announced that the Turfway Fall Championship will not be run this fall. The Fall Championship is designed as a prep to the Breeders’ Cup Marathon.