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Illinois Racing Board Awards 2021 Race Dates; Arlington To Host Million Festival Races Next Year

The Illinois Racing Board on Wednesday awarded 2021 race dates to Arlington Park and Hawthorne Race Course.

Arlington will host 68 live race days, with opening weekend featuring the Kentucky Oaks (April 30, 2021) and the Kentucky Derby (May 1, 2021), and will conclude on Saturday, Sept. 25, 2021.

Hawthorne will host 50 live race dates, from March 6 through April 25 and from Oct. 1 through Dec. 31.

Arlington International Racecourse President, Tony Petrillo, is enthusiastic about continuing Arlington's traditions in 2021.

“This will be our 94th year of operation and Arlington remains committed to fans, guests, bettors, horsemen/horsewomen, and the community,” Petrillo said. “We look forward to showcasing the renowned Arlington Experience in 2021, featuring our beautiful facility and providing race fans with the opportunity to wager on quality races along with a slate of graded stakes races.”

The Arlington meet will host many of the graded stakes races that were placed on hiatus in 2020 and will feature a festival of stakes races for Illinois horses, featuring the Bruce D. Stakes, Beverly D. Stakes, and the newly renamed Arlington Million: “Mister D. Stakes,” in honor of Richard Duchossois, who will be 100 years old next year.

Racing for the 2020 season continues Thursday through Saturday now until Sept. 26.

More specific race date information is available below:

ARLINGTON PARK – 68 Thoroughbred race programs and 220 total host programs.

January 3 through March 5 – dark host time. No live racing.
April 26 through May 31, racing 2 days per week on Fridays and Saturdays. Live racing begins on April 30. Dark April 26 through April 29 and May 7, racing on May 9.
June 1 through June 30, racing 3 days per week on Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays. Racing on June 20.
July 1 through August 14, racing 4 days per week on Thursdays, Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays. Dark July 1.
August 15 through August 31, racing 4 days per week on Wednesdays, Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays. Dark August 4 and 11, racing on August 1 and 8.
September 1 through September 30, racing 3 days per week on Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays. Dark September 2, 3 and 26 through 30, racing on September 5.

HAWTHORNE RACE COURSE – 50 Thoroughbred race programs and 145 total host programs.

January 1 and 2 – dark host time. No live racing.
March 6 through April 25, racing 2 days per week on Saturdays and Sundays.
October 1 through November 30, racing 3 days per week on Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays.
December 1 through December 31, racing 2 days per week on Saturdays and Sundays. Dark December 25

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‘Long-Term, That Land Gets Sold’: Churchill CEO Casts Dark Future Over Arlington Park

Churchill Downs Inc. CEO Bill Carstanjen made headlines in Illinois on Thursday after comments about the CDI-owned Arlington Park during a quarterly earnings call with investors, reports the Chicago Daily Herald.

“The long-term solution is not Arlington Park. That land will have a higher and better purpose for something else at some point,” Carstanjen said. “But we want to work constructively with all of the constituencies in the market to see if there's an opportunity to move the license or otherwise change the circumstances so that racing can continue in Illinois. For us, we've been patient and thoughtful and constructive with the parties up in that jurisdiction, but long-term that land gets sold and that license will need to move if it's going to continue.”

Churchill declined the chance to pursue casino games at Arlington last year, despite having the opportunity to apply for a slots license at the Chicagoland track last year. Initially CDI had planned to conduct sports betting at Arlington, but now those operations in Illinois will be restricted to Rivers Casino.

The Illinois Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association released the following statement in response to Carstanjen's comments: “For Churchill's CEO to say preposterously that Churchill has been 'patient' with other stakeholders speaks to the height of Churchill's contempt for the elected officials and working families of Illinois. The very least that Churchill could do is be honest about its true intention: the company cares only about maximizing profit and is happy to sacrifice the spirit of Illinois law and the livelihood of working Illinoisans to serve its greed.”

Delayed first by the coronavirus pandemic and then by a contract dispute with the ITHA, Arlington began a 30-day meet without fans on July 23.

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Letter to the Editor: Dora Delgado Diversity Piece

I’m writing to offer my thanks for the article you posted recently featuring Dora Delgado. Timely, yes and helpful to learn more about her thinking on diversity, equity and inclusion within our sport.

It also hit home for me as my father was one of three black trainers actively campaigning in Chicago during the 1970s – 1990s. Mr. Clifford Scott, Paul Darjean and my father, Clenon Brown.

I’ve enjoyed the sport since age three, when my father started teaching me how to read the DRF, he noted, before I could read a book–a skill that still pays every now and then today (smile).

My father first got the bug by traveling to Ak-Sar-Ben with friends on weekends in the early 70s, which led to him buying a few claimers and racing in Floria and Chicago. Kansas City was home for us, but no pari-mutuel wagering laws on the books prevented him from enjoying the sport in Missouri.

Later, he moved into the sport full-time and began pursuit of his trainer’s license which he secured in Kentucky in the early 1980s. After that, he was off to the races, training in Kentucky, and Chicago.

Living in Missouri with my mother afforded me the chance to spend summer and winter breaks at Arlington, Hawthorne and Sportsman’s Park, mucking stalls, feeding our horses and those of our ‘day horses’ all the while soaking up the backstretch culture. In the meantime, my mother became an executive within state government in Missouri, and at home I grew up amongst legislators, governors and attended school with their children.

In my journey, I’ve served in the military and have made a career as an executive in charge of efforts by firms in the top echelon of the Fortune 500 in their diversity, equity and inclusion practices. My passion remains in Thoroughbred racing and hope that through this note I can raise my profile in the conversation underway. I think I can contribute value to stakeholders as we continue to invest in the sport, ensuring its future, leaning on lessons learned from its past.

Change is the only constant in business; as much as the sport leans on year-on-year consistency, its front, middle and back office appear not to have embraced some aspects change in the business model.

Regards,

Shelly Brown

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After Weeks Of Negotiation, Arlington Park, Horsemen Come To Agreement For 2020 Meet

Live racing at Arlington Park in Arlington Heights, Il. will begin on July 23, as approved by the Illinois Racing Board during a special teleconference meeting on Monday.

That approval was held up by contract negotiations between Arlington representatives and the Illinois Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association, with the two sides close to an agreement several times over the past two weeks. The main sticking point had been the length of the contract; Arlington wanted a two-year deal, while the ITHA wanted to keep it to a single year.

After multiple rescheduled meetings of the IRB, the parties finally came to an agreement and signed a contract shortly before Monday's teleconference call. Live racing will begin at Arlington on July 23 without spectators, and racing a total of 30 race days on Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays with daily post times of 2 p.m. or 2:30 p.m.

The Arlington Million will not be held in 2020.

On Monday's call, a recess of the meeting had to be called after Hawthorne Race Course's assistant general manager John Walsh suggested his track be awarded some dark host days, and the ensuing conversation became heated.

“Dark host days” award an increased portion of revenues collected from off-track betting on days without live racing. Walsh made the argument that Hawthorne had incurred costs of approximately $239,000 per month for the three months its backside was open while Arlington Park's remained closed, allowing horsemen to have a place to stable their horses during the pandemic.

Arlington representatives balked at the idea, arguing that reassigning dark host days would put the Arlington meet in jeopardy due to having to reassess purse money.

Following the 30-minute recess, a motion for Hawthorne to receive some of Arlington's dark host days was defeated 5-1. The motion to approve the existing Arlington Park/ITHA agreement then passed unanimously.

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