The 75th anniversary season of Thoroughbred racing in Michigan may well be the last, as horsemen and industry leaders search for a way to keep the sport going in the face of grim economic realities.

A group of horsemen's associations on Wednesday night joined together in asking that Churchill Downs make the signal for Saturday's Kentucky Derby available to all account-wagering platforms.

A group of horsemen's associations on Wednesday joined together in asking that Churchill Downs make the signal for Saturday's Kentucky Derby available to all account-wagering platforms.

Churchill Downs Inc. was expected to launch its new account-wagering platform as of Wednesday morning, the company announced Tuesday.

The platform, twinspires.com, will launch three days before the running of the Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs in Louisville on Saturday. Churchill had earlier planned to begin operation before the opening of its spring meet last Saturday, but was delayed because of technical issues, Churchill officials said.

The Indiana General Assembly passed a bill late Sunday night that would allow each of the state's two horse racing tracks to operate 2,000 slot machines, provided the tracks pay a $250 million license fee.

Even by horse racing's dysfunctional standards, it was a tough week for the sport's account-wagering customers.

Within a span of seven days, customers of AmericaTab's online wagering sites were told that they would need to open an account with a different company if they wanted to bet races from Belmont, Del Mar, Keeneland, and Oak Tree, among other tracks, and customers of Youbet.com were told that they would need to find another service if they wanted to bet the races at the tracks owned by Churchill Downs and Magna Entertainment Corp.

The Ocala Breeders' Sales Company's April 2-year-old sale showed losses at Wednesday's second of four sessions in Ocala, Fla. Wednesday's top seller was a $260,000 Hook and Ladder-Expensive Tap colt that agent James Ventura bought from agent Ricky Leppala. The colt had worked a quarter-mile in 22 seconds at the sale's under-tack preview.

A $180,000 Double Honor-Clarabella colt bought by agent Buzz Chace was the top seller Tuesday at the opening session of the Ocala Breeders' Sales Company's April 2-year-old auction in Ocala, Fla.

The highest-priced filly attracted some celebrity attention: the $170,000 Is It True-Cielo's Dance filly was purchased by trainer Wesley Ward in partnership with actor Joe Pesci and actress Heather Locklear. The Hartley/De Renzo Thoroughbreds agency sold the Is It True filly.

Legislation that would redirect part of the profits from Native American casinos to horse racing purses will be introduced in the California legislature in the near future, according to a statement released by the bill's sponsor, Dean Florez of Shafter.

The bill is designed to aid racetracks without allowing them to install slot machines. Racetracks last sought slot machines through a 2004 referendum, which was roundly defeated by state voters.

LEXINGTON, Ky. - The Keeneland April 2-year-old sale on Tuesday wrapped up the major juvenile auction season with mixed results that illustrate the risks of selling into today's 2-year-old market.

The one-day sale rang up its highest price ever for a filly when the sale-topping Mineshaft-Stylish Talent filly brought $1.75 million from buyer B. Wayne Hughes. But it was tough going for many sellers, as indicated by the 47-percent buy-back rate. Other sellers simply withdrew horses they thought wouldn't reach their reserves.