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Santa Anita, Thoroughbred Owners Of California Announce 10 Percent Purse Boost For Fall Meet

Santa Anita's 2021 Autumn Meeting, which opens Friday, Oct. 1, will now offer owners and horsemen a 10 percent increase in all overnight races as Santa Anita and the Thoroughbred Owners of California (TOC) have reached an agreement that will enable Santa Anita to provide a comprehensive purse increase for the third consecutive race meeting, dating back to the 2020 Autumn Meet.

“This is a very significant development and we want to thank everyone at TOC for helping to make this happen,” said Chris Merz, Santa Anita Director of Racing and Racing Secretary. “To be able to offer a purse increase for the third meet in-a-row clearly demonstrates we are trending in the right direction and that's important when owners and horsemen are making plans not only for racing, but breeding as well.

“Our Autumn stall applications are very encouraging as is the success of the current meet at Del Mar. I think people around the country and here in California are realizing this is a tremendous place to race and train and we hope to keep the momentum going into the new year.”

With the two-day Breeders' Cup World Championships scheduled for Nov. 5 & 6 at Del Mar, there will be added interest in a variety of Breeders' Cup “Win & You're In” qualifying races, the first of which will be contested on opening day, Oct. 1.

With four stakes planned, three of them, the Grade 1, $300,000 American Pharoah, the Grade 2, $200,000 Chandelier and the $100,000 Speakeasy, are all Breeders' Cup “Win & You're In” events and they'll be complemented by the Grade 2, $200,000 Eddie D Stakes, for 3-year-olds and up at 6 ½ furlongs on turf.

“This purse increase is significant not only to our owners and horsemen, but to all of us in the Thoroughbred industry here in California,” said Nate Newby, Santa Anita Senior Vice President and General Manager. “There's no question we're moving in the right direction and we're hopeful this is going to help with field size which will provide better gambling opportunities for our fans.”

For additional information, including complete details on overnight purse increases for the 2021 Autumn Meet, please visit santaanita.com or call the Santa Anita Racing Office at (626) 574-RACE.

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Craig Duchossois: Blame Politicians, Not Churchill Downs For Arlington Park’s Demise

Craig Duchossois, son of former Arlington Park owner Richard Duchossois, said Illinois politicians are to blame for the pending demise of the suburban Chicago racetrack owned by publicly traded Churchill Downs Inc. (CDI).

In an interview with the Daily Herald, Duchossois said the 2019 legislation that gave Illinois racetracks the right to operate a casino came “too late” for Arlington Park. By the time the law passed, CDI already had purchased an interest in the Rivers Casino, about 10 miles away from Arlington Park. It now is the casino's majority owner.

Illinois horsemen were stunned when CDI officials announced months after the bill was signed into law that they would not seek a license to operate a casino at Arlington Park. CDI's chief executive officer, Bill Carstanjen, announced plans to sell the property last year and began accepting bids earlier this year. Among the interested parties are the NFL's Chicago Bears. At least one group is interested in keeping racing alive at Arlington by developing a portion of the property but maintaining the track, grandstand and stabling.

Arlington Park did not apply for 2022 racing dates.

“If they (Illinois lawmakers) would've gotten their head out of the sand and done it five or 10 years earlier, whole different ballgame,” Duchossois said. “Who knows what would have happened then. But at least we would've been given the chance to compete fairly, and they didn't allow that. And now they're saying Churchill is at fault? That just doesn't make any sense.”

Duchossois, like his father a former member of the CDI board of directors, told the Daily Herald discussions about closing Arlington and developing the property came up a number of years ago.

Arlington merged with CDI in 2000, making the Duchossois family the largest single shareholder in the company whose flagship racetrack, Churchill Downs, and its headquarters are located in Louisville, Ky. Churchill Downs also owns Fair Grounds in Louisiana and Presque Isle Downs in Pennsylvania (both tracks also have casinos) but ceased racing operations at Calder in Florida (replacing it with jai alai to maintain a casino license) and sold Hollywood Park in California to a land development company that eventually closed the track and built a football stadium there.

In February 2021, CDI repurchased one million of the three million shares reportedly held by The Duchossois Group. The private transaction was valued at $193.9 million.

Craig Duchossois was interviewed by the Daily Herald on the afternoon of the track's signature event, formerly known as Arlington Million Day. The Arlington Million, inaugurated in 1981, had its named changed to the Mr. D. Stakes to honor Richard Duchossois, while the prize money was slashed from $1 million to $600,000. Duchossois, 99 years old, did not attend.

Charles Town Jockeys Refused To Ride Over Ongoing ‘Inconsistencies And Issues’ With Paychecks

The following statement was issued by The Jockeys' Guild on Monday, following the cancellation of races on Saturday, Aug. 14 at Charles Town Races in West Virginia:

“The decision by the jockeys at Charles Town to refuse to ride on Saturday, Aug. 14 was made with just cause and only after many discussions with management concerning timely payment for jockey's mounts. Receipt of payment in a timely fashion has been a problem on and off for several years at Charles Town and Saturday was not the first time the jockeys have considered refusing to ride over the issue.

“Representatives of the Jockey's Guild and members of the Charles Town jockey colony have had discussions with management and stewards several times in hopes of getting a permanent resolution. Concerns include, but are not limited to, changes to the day of the week the jockeys may get paid without notifying the jockeys and there have been instances when checks have been issued, jockeys were advised that there are insufficient funds in the account to cover the paychecks.

“Most jockeys live paycheck to paycheck and they felt they had no other recourse but to bring attention again to this on-going situation. The inconsistencies and issues of receiving payments consistently occurs nowhere else in the country, including at Mountaineer racetrack, which is also in West Virginia. Everyone can relate to doing a job and being paid in a timely manner. Jockeys are no exception. The jockeys at Charles Town put themselves in harm's way in each and every race and to not be paid in a timely manner is simply unacceptable.

“This is an issue that the management and stewards at Charles Town need to resolve immediately.”

Charles Town's vice president of racing operations Erich Zimny told the Paulick Report on Saturday that the issues, which resulted in the cancellation of races when jockeys refused to ride, revolved around delayed payments into the jockeys' account.

“We've tried damn hard to make racing, including all of the administrative functions involved, as normal as possible despite the situation we're all still in being far from normal.” Zimny said. “There was a temporary delay in money getting transferred for jockeys' checks into the normal account. The riders were told they could instead cash their checks at the casino cage and there would be no issue. Apparently, the delay was enough to choose not to ride and create a negative impact for everyone.”

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Santa Anita Releases Fall Stakes Schedule

Santa Anita's 16-day Autumn Meeting will get off to a flying start on Friday, Oct. 1, as four graded stakes will highlight what figures to be a tremendous card. The Autumn Meet, which will run through Oct. 31, will again provide “Ship & Win” incentives to attract out-of-state connections and will showcase some of the best horses in the world as they complete final preparations for the two-day Breeders' Cup World Championships at Del Mar on Nov. 5 and 6.

Three Breeders' Cup “Win & You're In” Challenge Race qualifiers, along with the Grade 2, $200,000 Eddie D Stakes, will highlight an afternoon of world-class racing on opening day, with first post time at 1 p.m. PT.

The Grade 1, $300,000 American Pharoah, for 2-year-olds at a mile and one sixteenth, will serve as a prep to the G1 Breeders' Cup Juvenile; the Grade 2, $200,000 Chandelier Stakes, for 2-year-old fillies pointing to the Grade 1 Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies, and the $100,0000 Speakeasy Stakes, for 2-year-olds at five furlongs on turf, will serve as a prep to the Grade 1 Breeders Cup Juvenile Turf.

The Eddie D, named for the all-time great retired Hall of Fame jockey Eddie Delahoussaye, is for 3-year-olds and up at 6 ½ furlongs on turf and will provide a launching pad to the Grade 1 Breeders' Cup Turf Sprint at Del Mar Nov. 6.

“Our intention is to get the Autumn Meet off to a fast start,” said Chris Merz, Santa Anita Director of Racing and Racing Secretary. “With the Breeders' Cup at Del Mar this year, we want the word to go out, far and wide, that we're offering tremendous opportunities for owners and horsemen to prep here and have their best possible chances for Championship success on Nov. 5 & 6.

“We anticipate great weather with optimal conditions for both training and racing. When you factor in that we're just a 90-minute van ride away from Del Mar, we're hopeful a good many folks will choose to race here this fall. We look forward to welcoming everyone and to providing lucrative gambling opportunities to our fans as well.”

On Saturday, Oct. 2, four pivotal Breeders' Cup prep races will be offered: The Grade 1, $300,000 Awesome Again Stakes at a mile and one eighth for horses considering the Grade 1, $6 million Breeders' Cup Classic at Del Mar Nov. 6; the Grade 1, $300,000 Rodeo Drive Stakes at a mile and one quarter on turf for fillies and mares three and up that are pointing to the Grade 1 Breeders' Cup Filly & Mare Turf, and the Grade 2, $200,000 Santa Anita Sprint Championship at six furlongs—a Breeders' Cup “Win & You're In” qualifier to the Grade 1 Breeders' Cup Sprint.

Additionally, the Grade 2, $200,000 City of Hope Mile (turf), a potential showcase for those horses eyeing the Grade 1 Breeders' Cup Mile, will also be run on Oct. 2.

On Sunday, Oct. 3, a total of five stakes will be carded, including one additional “Win & You're In” qualifier–the Grade 2, $200,000 Zenyatta, which will be contested by fillies and mares three and up at 1 1/16 miles. The Zenyatta will serve as a prep to the Grade 1 Breeders' Cup Distaff. A pair of $200,000 stakes for juveniles at one mile on turf, the Surfer Girl and the Zuma Beach, will also be offered, as will the Grade 3, $100,000 Chillingworth Stakes and the $75,000 Unzip Me.

The popular 'Ship & Win' program will again be available to participating horses who started at Del Mar and to eligible newcomers making their first start at Santa Anita's Autumn Meet.

Santa Anita's complete 2021 Autumn Stakes Schedule is available online at santaanita.com/horsemen. For additional information regarding ticketing, dining reservations or racing opportunities, please visit santaanita.com or call (626) 574-RACE.

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