The Maryland Jockey Club made the announcement on its website and on Twitter prior to the time of the first post at Laurel Park On April 21, it canceled the race at the track between Baltimore and Washington, DC “until further notice.”
The Riders were informed of the suspension via text message at 10:34am
According to Maryland Racing Commission Chairman Michael Algeo, that cancellation will spike in the race “at least this weekend.” One possibility for future racing is to start the race Racecourse Pimlico Preakness meeting two days earlier than scheduled.
Friday’s closure comes after a tragic day April 20 saw a 4-year-old pony named Golden gallop suffered a catastrophic injury during race 4, a $40,000 claimant traveled 1 1/16 miles on the main track. The foal owned by SAB Stable and trained by Hugh McMahon had to be destroyed on the track. A race later, a 6-year-old castrated horse named Bigmancan was injured during a six-way dirt starter’s optional rights race and had to leave. Bigmancan is owned by Ronald Cuneo and coached by Damon Dilodovico.
These incidents occurred on a day that began with a meeting described as “controversial” between coaches, racers, gymnasts, and race consultants. The parent company of Maryland Jockey Club 1 / ST Racing organized.
The decision to suspend the race marking the second day was suddenly canceled after two weeks. The April 8 card was also shelved after two horses were seriously injured during morning work, prompting riders to refuse to ride.
According to Algeo, the April 21 cancellation was instigated by the Maryland Racing Commission. After Thursday’s injury, he said he had received several calls from riders worried about the condition of the track, which prompted him to call the Acting Equestrian Club president. Maryland Mike Rogers.
“I said, ‘I don’t want to set a precedent about the Racing Commission coming in and saying we’re going to stop the races,'” Algeo recalls. “But based on the information I got, we’re going to have to do something about it.”
Subsequent conversations between Rogers and the Maryland Thoroughbred Riders Association resulted in an agreement to halt in-person racing at Laurel, Algeo said.
Tim Keefe, president of the MTHA, sent a letter April 21 via email to Rogers recommending that the race “based on recent events” at Laurel be suspended over the weekend and moved to Racecourse Pimlico starting April 27. In a tweet sent late Friday, the MTHA noted the cancellation of race weekend and added that the race office will open April 22 for entries. April 27 in Laurel.
Timothy Keefe
“We further recommend that training at Laurel Park include only runners and gallopers and that horses are moved to Pimlico for training until the surface at Laurel Park is cleared by our consultant John Passero. I evaluate and consider it safe,” the letter states. MTHA posted a copy of the letter on its Facebook page.
What happens next is still unclear. The track has five $100,000 bets scheduled for April 22, three on grass and two on the main road. As of press time, the riders have yet to be informed about when the race will resume at the track or what will happen to those bets. Land stakes are Indigenous Dancers Stakes for children 3 years of age and older that walk nine feathers and Primonetta Bets for mares and mares 3 years of age and older that walk six feathers. The grass bets are the Dahlia Stakes for mares and mares 3 years of age and older and the Henry S. Clark Bets for children 3 years and older both go one mile and the King 5 1/2 Longhair Stakes T. Leatherbury for 3-year-olds and up.
In a statement released late Friday, the MJC reaffirmed that the race was canceled for the weekend and added that they will also “discuss plans to implement veterinary and safety protocols.” All updates are similar to protocols that have been in place in California since 2019 and have been shown to significantly reduce horse deaths during racing and training.”
The Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority has also been contacted for comment but did not respond at press time.
Laurel’s cancellation comes at a particularly difficult time for the state’s racing industry. Ongoing problems on the track have shaken trust between riders and racers; riders have been active on the surface for years, and a 2017 report by former track director MJC Passero, commissioned by the MTHA, revealed serious problems.
The race has been canceled twice at Laurel in 2021. The first time in April to conduct an assessment of the surfaces. The track underwent a four-month, multi-million-dollar resurfacing in 2021, including replacement of cushions, soles and substructures, which officially ended August 10 when the race track once again start training on the track. However, the track closed again in early December after a number of horse deaths in November.
In September 2022, the Maryland Jockey Club track maintenance team worked on the layout of the main track by adding some clay to parts of the surface—primarily from the half-mile post to the eighth— to make the composition consistent with the rest of the surface facing the cold months.
In addition, recent studies have highlighted the challenges Maryland industry faces with two aging facilities in dire need of renovation. The funding available to address the facility issues is widely acknowledged to be insufficient for current missions. There is also uncertainty about whether the Stronach Corporation will continue to engage in Maryland and whether it will function correctly in any capacity.
The Laurel Spring Meetup is currently scheduled to take place via the Kentucky Derby over the weekend before the race turns to Pimlico for the Preakness meet.
Frank Vespe runs Racing The site covers mid-Atlantic races and breeding.
