Total handle on U.S. races this February dropped by 6.8 percent, according to figures released by Equibase on Thursday, due entirely to harsh winter weather that led to cancellations of races across the U.S.
While total handle fell from $901.3 million to $840.1 million, the number of races held in the month plunged 22.2 percent, from 2,477 last year to 1,928 this year. A winter storm in the middle of the month resulted in cancellations throughout the South, Midwest, and Northeast.
PHOENIX – Jockey Scott Stevens is reportedly retiring after suffering significant injuries in a recent spill at Turf Paradise. The news was announced Wednesday via Twitter by Stevens’s younger brother, Hall of Fame rider Gary Stevens.
Scott Stevens, 60, was involved in a spill at the Phoenix track Feb. 24. He came out of that race with a fractured vertebrae as well as other minor injuries. Gary Stevens said in the tweet that Scott had feeling in his extremities and there was no sign of paralysis, but that he will “never ride competitively again.”
Two Arizona Senate committees have approved a bill that would authorize historical horseracing machines and sports betting at both Turf Paradise and Arizona Downs, according to legislative records, but the bill faces an uphill battle in a state where Indian tribes hold a powerful position in the casino marketplace.
Researchers at the University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine have developed a test that can detect the presence of a potential gene-doping agent in the joint fluid and blood of a horse, the researchers announced on Thursday, a finding that represents the first step in combating what may be an emerging threat in performance athletics.
Churchill Downs Inc. had a net loss of $81.9 million in 2020 on sharply reduced revenue, according to financial statements released on Wednesday night, with results impacted by the rescheduling of its most famous races, the temporary closure of its casinos during the year, and a nearly $100 million legal settlement related to its prior ownership of a mobile gaming company.
Churchill Downs Inc., the powerful Kentucky-based racing and casino company, intends to put its Arlington Park property in the Northwest Chicago suburbs up for sale, calling it a “unique redevelopment opportunity,” the company announced on Tuesday afternoon.
LEXINGTON, Ky. – Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear on Monday signed a bill allowing for the continued operation of historical horse racing machines at Kentucky racetracks.
Beshear signed the bill after vowing to support any effort to clear up the legality of the devices, which have generated hundreds of millions of dollars in revenue for their operators and provided subsidies to purses and breeder awards in the state.
Due to inclement weather, the Maryland Jockey Club has canceled Friday’s racing program at Laurel Park and moved the card to Thursday, Feb. 25. In addition, this week's Stronach 5 wager has been canceled.
The National Weather Service has issued a Winter Weather Advisory for parts of Maryland on Friday.
LEXINGTON, Ky. – The Kentucky racing industry dodged a bullet on Thursday night when the state’s House of Representatives joined the Senate in passing a bill allowing for the continued operation of historical horse racing machines by licensed racetracks, but the battle over the devices is not over.
LEXINGTON, Ky. – The Kentucky House of Representatives on Thursday evening approved a bill that will give casinos at racetracks the green light to continue operating historical horse racing machines, following in the footsteps of the state’s Senate, which passed an identical bill earlier this week.
