In late February, the Kentucky horse racing industry called on state legislators to protect the historic race from gray machines.
Post this effort under the title “don’t mess with success”, not to mention the fairness issue when HHR gets specific approval from the legislature while gray machines are popping up at stations Gasoline, convenience stores, and restaurants across the state are operating under regulatory oversight. legal loopholes.
Industry advocates are familiar with how HHR has helped raise Kentucky’s pockets, livestock, and sales. One need only look at the MarketWatch section of the March issue of BloodHorse Magazine for the latest good news on this ongoing success story.
Total wallet at Churchill Downs grew 26% in 2022 to $84,995,636, while Keeneland purses spiked 49% to $38.734,973 (that figure doesn’t include the Breeders’ Cup World Championships contested there in 2022). Both Kentucky celebrities earn an average of over $1.1 million in wallets daily.
Kentucky Downs, which was the first track in Bluegrass to install HHR games, raised 19% of its total to $17,863,298 in eight race days. The track’s daily average of $2,322,912 led all races in North America.
Kentucky now boasts three racetracks that award seven-figure prizes each day. The only other racetrack in North America at that daily average is Racecourse Saratoga at $1,232,523.
Race Park. daily average is $346,458). Daily average wallet has increased by 22% at Ellis . Park to $412,292, but the total amount fell 6% to $9,482,710 as the meeting was shortened by seven days in 2022. Ellis Park’s future is bright because of the properties of Churchill Downs Inc. will soon benefit from an HHR annex in Owensboro.
Coach Steve Asmussen, the first to reach 10,000 wins in North America, said Kentucky’s prominence has only increased. A press release from the Kentucky Riders’ Protection and Benevolence Association notes that Asmussen now hosts races year-round in the state, with 25 horses currently based in Turfway.
“The importance of Kentucky has always been extremely important,” Asmussen said. “But I think that’s nothing compared to how important Kentucky is to horse racing in the future. I have no doubt it’s far ahead of California and New York today, and that would be funny if say 5-10 years ago… I think this gap will widen.”
Some other wallets featured in the MarketWatch report are the 122% growth in total wallets at Hawthorne Racecourse as that Chicago-area racetrack managed to regain some lost days after the Arlington International Speedway closed in 2021. Hawthorne provided an additional 18 race days in 2022, a total that has already exceeded. over $14.5 million and the average daily wallet amount improved 63% to $214,169.
