historical horse racing | Horse Racing Free Tips

TDN International Editor Kelsey Riley Talks Arc On Writers’ Room

In addition to all the Stateside action this weekend–the final leg of the Triple Crown, Fall Stars Weekend at Keeneland and 11 Breeders’ Cup “Win and You’re In” events–the biggest race of the year in Europe will also be run with Sunday’s G1 Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe at Longchamp in Paris. Wednesday on the TDN Writers’ Room podcast presented by Keeneland, TDN International Editor Kelsey Riley joined the crew as the Green Group Guest of the Week to talk about the much-anticipated showdown between Enable (GB) (Nathaniel {Ire}) and Love (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}), how heavy rains may impact the running and much more.

Asked whether or not the Arc is a two-horse affair as the bettors have surmised, Riley said, “Oh no. It’s very much an open race, and the major development this week has been the rain that’s falling in Paris. Right now, the course at Longchamp is listed as ‘very soft’, which is the same as what it was last year when Enable ran second, and there’s more rain still forecast to come … So you have a horse like Stradivarius (Ire) (Sea The Stars {Ire}), who’s been the best stayer in Europe the past couple seasons. I think that the soft going will help his chances a bit. It’ll turn the race into a bit more of a stamina contest.”

Stradivarius, currently a distant third choice for the bettors behind Enable and Love, is not the only potential upsetter on Riley’s radar.

“Sottsass (Fr) (Siyouni {Fr}) was third in last year’s Arc over this same soft going and ran a very game race there,” she said. “He won a Group 1 race [the Prix Ganay] in France earlier this year. His trainer, Jean-Claude Rouget has spoken very highly of him this week coming into it, saying this is the best he’s ever had him, and that they’ve had this as their key target ever since he finished third last year. Another horse that I find a little interesting is Rouget’s ‘other’ horse, the only other 3-year-old filly in the race besides Love, Raabihah (Sea The Stars {Ire}). She was very impressive winning her first two starts this spring, and Jean-Claude, right from that point, was saying, ‘This is our Arc filly.'”

The success of fillies and mares has been a consistent theme throughout Arc history. Riley was asked about why they’ve competed so frequently and done so well against males in the race.

“With the weight scale in France this time of year, the 3-year-old fillies get a big weight break for the Arc,” she said. “They carry 121 pounds, which is what Enable carried when she won her first Arc. Three-year-old colts carry 125, older mares 128 and older horses 131 pounds. It’s also down to the fact that, especially at this time of year in Europe, there are fewer opportunities at the Group 1 level for [fillies and mares] over the mile and a quarter to a mile and a half. In both Britain and France, there are only two Group 1 races for fillies and mares from the summer onward.”

Elsewhere on the show, the writers discussed the Horseracing Safety Integrity Act passing the U.S. House of Representatives, broke down the 11-horse GI Preakness S. and reacted to Improbable (City Zip) taking charge in the older male division. Then, in the West Point Thoroughbreds news segment, they analyzed the Kentucky Supreme Court decision that puts the future of historical horse racing machines in doubt and tried to figure out why alternative forms of gaming continue to grow while racing’s handle declines. Click here to watch the podcast; click here for the audio-only version.

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After HHR Decision from Court, Racing Considers Next Steps

Still reeling from a decision by the Kentucky Supreme Court that ruled that Historical Horse Racing (HHR) machines are illegal, the racing and breeding industries in the state have continued to work behind the scenes to find a way to keep the gaming machines operating. The machines have proved so popular that they handled $2.2 billion during the most recent fiscal year and contribute tens of millions annually to purses.

The court ruled that the machines, which resemble slot machines, did not fall under the legal definition of pari-mutuel gambling and, therefore, could not be approved by the Kentucky Racing Commission.

Kentucky Thoroughbred Association Executive Director Chauncey Morris said the sport’s best hope now rests with the state’s General Assembly, which could approve legislation that would make the machines legal. One way of doing so would be to pass legislation that changed the definition of pari-mutuel gambling so that it covers HHR. HHR allows bettors to wager on replays of races that have already been run.

“By the looks of it, this may need a legislative fix,” Morris said. “I know that everybody is sitting back and crafting their strategies on how to accomplish that.”

Morris said that he does not expect anything to happen within state government until after the November election.

“I suspect we will learn a lot more about the prospects for this after the election,” he said. “In the absence of a special session you’re going to have to wait for the natural beginning of the General Assembly. To be clear, it was a shocking and disappointing decision, but the decision did provide a road map on how the legislature, if they are so motivated, can change their definitions. Beyond that, everybody can speculate on what is going to happen but it will begin and end with the Kentucky General Assembly.”

Morris said it is hard to predict what the General Assembly would do, but added that some of the most influential lawmakers in the state have always supported horse racing.

“We have had some conversations but you never know what is going to happen until the General Assembly starts and takes up the issue,” he said. “It’s not dissimilar to what we saw with the Horse Racing Integrity and Safety Act that was introduced five years ago and it just cleared a first hurdle in the House. Legislation, it works in strange ways. I will say that it is no secret that our industry has some very meaningful friendships and allies in the Kentucky General Assembly, not the least of which is Senator Damon Thayer, the Speaker and others.”

Thayer, the Senate Majority Leader, is a former racing executive who has been one of the sport’s biggest supporters in the state capital of Frankfort. But Thayer said he was not ready to commit to an effort to craft legislation that would legalize HH.

“I’m just not ready or willing to talk about a legislative fix at this time,” he said..

“I don’t have a strong level of confidence that a legislative solution is a possibility,” he added.

HHR could be a thorny issue for some legislators. The push to have them declared illegal was led by the Kentucky Family Foundation, a socially conservative group that says it works on behalf of “families and the values that make families strong.” In a conservative state where religious organizations have a lot of clout, there will likely be many politicians who don’t want to come off as pro-gambling.

“This is a conservative state and this kind of caught everybody by surprise and now we have to find another alternative,” Morris said.

Thayer said he was keeping an eye on what steps might be taken by Exacta Systems, an HHR manufacturer. The Boynton Beach, Fla.-based company issued a press release last week that said it will introduce a new HHR system that will be legal based on the guidelines set forth in the Kentucky Supreme Court ruing.

“While we are disappointed with the Court’s decision, we do appreciate the clarity that the Court has provided as it pertains to HHR in Kentucky,” Exacta Systems President Jeremy Stein said in a statement . “After several years of litigation, we now have certainty on how HHR systems must operate in the state. In anticipation of this ruling, Exacta has devoted several months of development time to produce an alternate HHR system that complies with the Supreme Court decision. After reading opposing legal briefs and hearing the questions asked at oral arguments, we wanted to have an alternative system in place that addressed the objections raised by opposing counsel and the various Justices, as a contingency in the case of a negative ruling. The updated Exacta system is fully compliant with the requirements as articulated by the Supreme Court, and we are excited to present our updated system to the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission in the coming days.”

The Supreme Court decision was announced last Thursday, but the state’s HHR operations have yet to be discontinued. The Family Foundation has called on the tracks to cease operating the HHR machines. Kentucky Horse Racing Commission Executive Director Marc Guilfoil was not available Tuesday to clarify why the machines were still in operation.

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KEEP Issues Statement in Response to KY Supreme Court Ruling on HHR

The Kentucky Equine Education Project (KEEP) released the following statement in response to the Kentucky Supreme Court’s Opinion calling into question the operation of historical horse racing (HHR) in the Commonwealth:

“Thursday’s ruling by the Kentucky Supreme Court is devastating to the Commonwealth, the horse industry and the tens of thousands of Kentuckians who work in the industry.

The result of this ruling, if there is no action by the state legislature to enact law permitting wagering on HHR, would severely impact the horse industry at a time when Kentucky is leading all competing states in nearly every metric. That success is largely based on HHR and the financial incentives it has funded that have led to more horse operations moving to Kentucky, more horses being bred in Kentucky and more horses racing in Kentucky. The competitive advantage that Kentucky has over competing states will disappear overnight with the absence of HHR.

The potential elimination of HHR will have an immediate negative impact on the value of Kentucky horses and investment in Kentucky. This will lead to hardships for Kentucky’s racetracks and horse operations, loss in real estate values and tourism and, ultimately, to job losses across the industry. Kentucky’s signature industry has suffered a massive blow, from which recovery will be very difficult. This does not affect just the horse industry, it affects all Kentuckians as tax revenues from HHR and other industry programs will decline.

While this is devastating news for Kentucky’s horse industry, there are possible solutions and there may be an opportunity to create a permanent legislative fix for HHR. KEEP will continue working with the industry, the state legislature and the governor to advocate for policies to address immediate and long-term needs to build not just a stronger horse industry, but a stronger Kentucky.”

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KEEP: Kentucky’s Horse Industry Would Suffer ‘Massive Blow’ If Historical Horse Racing Ends

The Kentucky Equine Education Project (KEEP) released the following statement in response to the Kentucky Supreme Court's Opinion calling into question the operation of historical horse racing (HHR) in the Commonwealth:

“Thursday's ruling by the Kentucky Supreme Court is devastating to the Commonwealth, the horse industry and the tens of thousands of Kentuckians who work in the industry.

“The result of this ruling, if there is no action by the state legislature to enact law permitting wagering on HHR, would severely impact the horse industry at a time when Kentucky is leading all competing states in nearly every metric. That success is largely based on HHR and the financial incentives it has funded that have led to more horse operations moving to Kentucky, more horses being bred in Kentucky and more horses racing in Kentucky. The competitive advantage that Kentucky has over competing states will disappear overnight with the absence of HHR.

“The potential elimination of HHR will have an immediate negative impact on the value of Kentucky horses and investment in Kentucky. This will lead to hardships for Kentucky's racetracks and horse operations, loss in real estate values and tourism and, ultimately, to job losses across the industry. Kentucky's signature industry has suffered a massive blow, from which recovery will be very difficult. This does not affect just the horse industry, it affects all Kentuckians as tax revenues from HHR and other industry programs will decline.

“While this is devastating news for Kentucky's horse industry, there are possible solutions and there may be an opportunity to create a permanent legislative fix for HHR. KEEP will continue working with the industry, the state legislature and the governor to advocate for policies to address immediate and long-term needs to build not just a stronger horse industry, but a stronger Kentucky.”

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