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Empire 6 to Feature Daily Mandatory Payout in January

The New York Racing Association, Inc. announced the Empire 6 wager will offer a daily mandatory payout in the month of January beginning with Aqueduct’s New Year’s Day card, which is highlighted by the 151st renewal of the Jerome S., a one-turn mile for sophomores offering 10-4-2-1 Kentucky Derby qualifying points to the top-four finishers. First post on Friday’s nine-race card is 12:20 p.m. EST, with the Empire 6 set to kick off in Race 4 (1:50 p.m.)

Featuring a $0.20 bet minimum and 20% takeout, the Empire 6 wager requires bettors to select the first-place finisher of the final six races of the card. The full pool, minus takeout, will be distributed to bettors who select the first-place finisher in the greatest number of races on the card.

“Our loyal community of horseplayers has continually expressed interest and support for wagers that reward the daily player with the opportunity for impressive payouts,” said Joe Longo, NYRA Director of Simulcasting. “This pilot program is designed to be responsive to those sentiments while helping NYRA to determine the future of the Empire 6.”

Aqueduct will offer 19 racing dates in January with live racing conducted Thursday through Sunday, with the addition of a special Monday card Jan. 18 for Martin Luther King, Jr. Day.

The Empire 6 was launched in August 2019 with a jackpot provision in which the full pool would be paid out only to a single ticket selecting the first-place finisher in all six races, otherwise 75% of the day’s net pool would be distributed to those who selected the first-place finisher in the greatest number of races with the remainder added into a jackpot and carried to the next day’s Empire 6.

Thursday’s 2020 closing Big A card will feature mandatory payouts of the Empire 6, Early Pick 5 and Late Pick 5 wagers, in accordance with New York State Gaming Commission rules. The Empire 6, which has a jackpot of $183,471, begins in Race 3 at 1:46 p.m. Eastern. First post on Thursday’s eight-race card is 12:50 p.m.

For more information, visit www.NYRABets.com.

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Arizona Dept. Gaming Launches Wellness Program

At the December Arizona Racing Commission meeting, Arizona Department of Racing steward Magdaleno Perez announced the launch of the Healthy Humans, Healthy Horses track wellness program, created to address the growing substance abuse problem at the state’s racetracks by supporting racing participants who may be suffering from addiction.

“I commend Magdaleno and the entire racing team in their diligent efforts to move this project forward,” said ADGaming Director, Ted Vogt. “The Healthy Humans, Healthy Horses program will directly support Arizona horsemen and create a safer and healthier backside, driving us forward in meeting our mission to ethically and effectively regulate horse racing, while ensuring it is conducted in a socially responsible manner.”

The 2021 winter meet at Turf Paradise kicks off Jan. 4 and the Arizona Department of Gaming–Racing Division will implement the following measures:

Suspension reductions for those who seek help with substance abuse
Random drug testing for licensees on horseback
Partnering with subject matter experts to address the influx of substance abuse
Adjusting fines and suspensions for repeated drug-related offenses
Proactively connecting those seeking help with substance abuse to available resources statewide

“A big thank you to the Racing Division for their hard work to support the Arizona racing community,” said Racing Commission Chair, Rory Goreé. “It is a priority for the Commission to help ensure the health and safety of racing participants, and this project furthers that goal while providing necessary aid to those in need.”

For more information, click here.

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Top Stories of 2020

If nothing else, 2020 was a news-making year. From the indictments to the coronavirus to the passage of the Integrity Act, the news started early and just kept on coming.

For the first time ever, the TDN eclipsed 8 million pageviews. What were the most popular stories among those? We took a look back at the most-read stories of the year; while the indictments and the virus dominated the news, we also found some surprises.

Standardbred Horseman John Brennan Dies of Coronavirus, March 10, 2020.

Coming on the heels of the indictment news, the first racing-related death from COVID-19 was our most-read story of the year.

Cox Refuses to Take Rockingham Ranch Horses, by Bill Finley, March 10, 2020.

Published the same day as the number one story of the year and one day after the indictments, this story details Brad Cox’s unwillingness to take horses formerly trained by Jorge Navarro for Rockingham Ranch. It outstripped even the original indictment story in number of reads.

Jason Servis, Jorge Navarro Face Federal Indictment in Doping Scheme, by Bill Finley and Alan Carasso, March 9, 2020.

“The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York unsealed indictments against Thoroughbred veterinarians and trainers, including Jason Servis and Jorge Navarro Monday in Manhattan. A total of 27 defendants were named in four separate indictments, alleging that the two trainers and 25 others engaged in a `widespread, corrupt scheme by racehorse trainers, veterinarians, PED distributors and others to manufacture, distribute, and receive adulterated and misbranded PEDs and to secretly administer those PEDs to racehorses under scheme participants’ control.'” So began the story that would continue to make news for the rest of the year.

Empire Maker Dies, by Alan Carasso, January 20, 2020.

At the age of 20, Empire Maker succumbed to a rare disease that compromised his immune system. We took a look back at his legacy.

Woodford Team Voting for Independence, by Chris McGrath, February 6, 2020.

McGrath’s profile of Shannon Castagnola at Woodford Thoroughbreds was his most-read story for us in 2020.

Baffert Unveils Another Into Mischief Monster, November 22, 2020.

The debut of WinStar Farm’s Life Is Good (Into Mischief) was our most read race-result of the year and sixth most popular story overall.

Harness Trainer Rene Allard Latest Arrested in Doping Scandal, by Bill Finley, March 13, 2020.

Harness trainer Rene Allard, the second-leading trainer at Yonkers at the time of his arrest, brought the number of individuals known to be involved in the doping scandal to 29.

Letter to the Editor, Brad Weisbord, on his Battle with COVID-19, March 23, 2020.

“On Monday (3/18) my wife said to me in the middle of the night, `What’s wrong with you? You’re gasping for air.’ On Tuesday morning, I could not get out of bed.” Weisbord would go on to test positive for COVID-19.

Florida Racing Prepares to Say Goodbye to Calder, by Bill Finley, October 2, 2020.

Finley chronicles the last-ever season at Miami’s Calder Race Course, which had been in operation since 1971.

Despite Fears of Getting Caught, Alleged Doping Conspirators Chatted and Texted Anyway, by T.D. Thornton, March 9, 2020.

“The indictments also yield another startling revelation: That some of the defendants–particularly Navarro–allegedly expressed a fear of getting caught by communicating their alleged wrongdoings via phone conversations and text messaging. Yet they allegedly persisted in making alleged doping plans using their mobile devices anyway.” Thornton details those key 2019 conversations.

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NYTB Appoints Thompson to NYRA, NYTBDF Boards

New York Thoroughbred Breeders has announced Executive Director Najja Thompson will be appointed, as the NYTB’s representative, to the New York Racing Association Board of Directors and the New York Breeding and Development Fund Board of Directors, made effective at a Dec. 18 meeting of the Board. Thompson’s appointment fills the vacancies created with the resignation of former Executive Director Jeffrey Cannizzo, who will join NYRA on Jan. 1 as Senior Director of Government Affairs.

“I feel very fortunate to represent the interests of breeders in New York with this opportunity,” said Thompson. “The state of New York plays an integral part as a leader in our industry, and I’m honored to play a direct role in continuing to better our sport as a member of both the NYRA and the New York Breeding and Development Fund Board of Directors.”

Thompson, a graduate of Florida State University and Vice President of the Turf Publicists of America, worked in various roles in the marketing department, communications office, and most recently in the human resources department at NYRA prior to joining the NYTB Dec. 14.

“The NYTB Board of Directors is pleased to have Najja represent us on both the NYRA and New York State Development and Breeding Fund Boards,” said Thomas Gallo, President of the NYTB. “With his background, experience, and expertise he will be able to be an innovative force in synergizing the accomplished members of all boards to forward the interests of breeding and racing in New York. I am confident he will usher us into a new era of strength through unity in building a bigger and better Thoroughbred Horse industry in New York.”

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