With Woodbine Continuing To Compile Admirable Safety Numbers, Lawson Remains Big Fan Of Synthetic Surfaces

When it comes to breakdowns, the Tapeta surface at Woodbine isn't perfect. But it might be as close to perfect as any surface on the continent.

While horses throughout North America broke down on the dirt at a rate of 1.44 per 1,000 starts in 2022, the rate of breakdowns over the synthetic surface at Woodbine was 0.42. This year, after about 4,500 starts over Tapeta there have been only two fatalities during races. Also, there have been about 14,000 published workouts over Woodbine's synthetic tracks and only two fatalities there.

Woodbine CEO Jim Lawson is proud of those numbers, but not surprised.

“The statistics don't lie,” Lawson said.

Lawson, like most in the industry, has grown gravely concerned about the many high-profile breakdowns that have occurred this year in racing and believes that the sport must do something to combat the problem. Does that mean a massive shift from dirt surfaces to synthetic surfaces? While he is hesitant to tell someone else how to run their racetrack, he's not shy about telling Woodbine's story.

Woodbine replaced its dirt track with a Polytrack synthetic surface in 2006. By 2016, there was a need for a new racing surface and Lawson said he was under intense pressure to go back to dirt.

“I was under a lot of pressure and was attacked for considering that we go with Tapeta,” he said. “We wanted to be transparent about it, so we polled all our horsepeople. There was maybe a slight preference for Tapeta, but the people who were advocates of going back to dirt were nasty about it. I can't describe it any other way. We did the right thing when we moved to Tapeta.”

The Tapeta surface has consistently been one of the safest tracks in North America.

“It's come time for the industry to take a harder, more honest look at what's going on,” Lawson said. “As an industry, we are in a difficult position. The industry seriously needs to consider a change.”

Woodbine Racetrack's Tapeta surface | Michael Burns

An owner and breeder before he got involved in management at Woodbine, Lawson is well versed in dirt racing. He said that changing weather conditions make it difficult to maintain consistency on dirt tracks and that inconsistent tracks can be unsafe tracks. That was particularly an issue in Canada, where the early spring and late fall can be include a lot of nasty weather.

“A dirt surface is very good as long as the conditions are perfect and it's well maintained,” he said. “These major tracks, they do a good job. But they are dealt the hand they are dealt. You get cold weather and moisture and have to deal with drying out tracks. It's just not the same when it comes to consistency. Inconsistency with dirt surface is what is causing a lot of the problems. That's what we saw in California when they had their problems. It was watery on top, hard underneath. Or you would have a drying out track that would get lumps. It's much easier to keep a synthetic track, especially when you factor in weather, consistent and safer for the horses.”

Lawson has heard all the arguments made for sticking with dirt, namely that switching to synthetics would cause an upheaval in the breeding industry. He's not buying it.

“When we were deciding whether to go to Tapeta or back to dirt, I kept hearing that these stallions, particularly traditional dirt stallions in Kentucky, would be affected,” he said. “I have never seen any evidence that horses by high-end stallions won't do just as well on the Tapeta. Most horses like the Tapeta, regardless of who their sire is. It's the rare horse that doesn't like Tapeta. I have never bought this argument that it is somehow going to change the breed if we as an industry move significantly toward synthetic surfaces. I don't think anymore than 10 or 15 percent of the horses don't like Tapeta.”

The Breeders' Cup has been run once at Woodbine, in 1996 when the main track was dirt. Though the Woodbine facility is a good fit for the event, it has not come back since and Lawson is among those who believe one of the reasons is that the Breeders' Cup team does not want to upend things by switching its traditional dirt races to synthetics.

“I quietly campaigned a couple of years ago to have the Breeders' Cup take a hard look at Woodbine again because of our turf courses and our synthetic track,” he said. “I thought they could make a statement that this is potentially the future of the industry.”        He has not given up on having the event return to Toronto.

“I think that it would be a bold statement to move the Breeders' Cup to Woodbine at some point,” he said. “For there to be meaningful change, it's going to take someone to step up. I would love to see them give Woodbine another chance at the Breeders' Cup.  That's not me campaigning for the Breeders. Cup. I think the industry needs to recognize it has a serious problem and that this is a way to address this issue.”

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Return of King’s Plate Generates Largest Handle in Woodbine History

The 164th King's Plate generated the largest single-card handle in Woodbine Racetrack history on Sunday afternoon.

A total of $18,127,049.67 was wagered on Sunday's 13-race King's Plate card, eclipsing the previous record of $18,005,973.60 from the 2019 Queen's Plate. The record handle is also a significant increase from last year's Queen's Plate handle of $13.6 million.

“It's exciting to have ushered in a new era for the Plate in record-breaking fashion,” said Jim Lawson, CEO of Woodbine Entertainment. “We felt good about the buzz surrounding the first King's Plate in over 70 years and that was clearly backed up on Sunday through the energy of our sold-out crowd and the wagering support.”

The King's Plate race, won by Paramount Prince (Society's Chairman), brought in $4,455,176.26 in wagering, including a new record Win Pool of $1,179,172.71. The 17-horse field for the Plate was the largest since 2011.

“Our Racing Team did a great job putting together a competitive and appealing Plate card for horseplayers,” Lawson said. “I'm very proud of our entire team behind the scenes at Woodbine for their efforts. Now we aim to carry this momentum through the remainder of the season and the upcoming major stakes in September and October.”

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Woodbine And Bet365 Bring Horse Racing To Ontario Bettors

Woodbine Entertainment and bet365 have made horse racing now available to Ontario sports bettors, the track said in a release Friday.

“This a great day for Ontario sports bettors and especially for the horse racing industry in the province,” said Jim Lawson, CEO, Woodbine Entertainment. “For over a year, we have been working hard with regulators, government agencies and our partners at bet365 to develop the technology and satisfy all requirements to allow players to access pari-mutuel horse racing betting products using accounts with legal gaming operators in Ontario with the customer experience at the forefront. Betting on horse racing in Ontario is now on its way to becoming more accessible than ever.”

In addition, Woodbine Entertainment and bet365 created a four-year marketing partnership, in which the latter receives naming rights for the apron winner's circle, inner turf course and paddock. Additionally, bet365 will have naming rights for stakes races throughout the year.

 

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Woodbine Entertainment Adds New Board Members

Standardbred owner and breeder Brad Grant and Canadian sports business executive Scott Mitchell were named to the Woodbine Entertainment Board, the organization said in a release Wednesday.

Also, Mark Saunders has been re-elected to Woodbine Entertainment's Board of Directors after taking a short leave of absence to run in the recent By-Election for Mayor of the City of Toronto.

“We are very pleased to welcome Brad and Scott, and welcome back Mark, to our Board,” said Hugh Mitchell, Chair of Woodbine Entertainment's Board of Directors. “Their diverse wealth of business acumen, knowledge, leadership and experience bodes well to contribute to our complex and growing business. Our Board very much looks forward to working with each of these exceptional individuals.”

Grant has been the leading Woodbine Standardbred owner for six of the last seven seasons and currently sits atop the standings for 2023. Mitchell is currently the Managing Partner and CEO of the Hamilton Sports Group (HSG). Saunders is a retired police officer and most recently, the Chief of Police for the Toronto Police Service.

“We welcome back Mark and look forward to benefiting from his experiences and leadership, as we do with Brad and Scott,” added Lawson. “All three individuals will add a breadth of knowledge and experience that will complement and support our existing directors as we continue to build our business and industry for future growth.”

Woodbine Entertainment said that former CEO and long-time Director Nick Eaves is retiring from the Board.

“I would like to thank Nick for his countless contributions to our organization and industry over the past several decades,” said Jim Lawson, CEO, Woodbine Entertainment. “His leadership and steady hand during challenging times served Woodbine well and our organization and industry continue to benefit from his leadership through the years.”

Grant, Mitchell and Saunders's appointments to Woodbine Entertainment's Board of Directors are subject to regulatory approval.

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