Twice As Nice: Breeders’ Cup Expands To 11 Races, Two Days

Breeders’ Cup Adds To Purse, Expands To Two-Day Event

The Breeders’ Cup World Championships will expand to 11 races and a two-day format, with this year’s event taking place Friday, October 26, and Saturday, October 27, at Monmouth Park in New Jersey. The Breeders’ Cup BOD on Friday approved the addition of three races with $1M purses, bringing the 11-race purse total to $23M. Further approvals are necessary from the NJSEA and New Jersey regulators. ESPN will cover both days of the event (Breeders’ Cup). The DAILY RACING FORM’s Matt Hegarty noted the $23M total purse is more than the $21M for the six-race Dubai World Cup program in March. However, the purse for the World Cup race is $6M, compared to $5M for the Breeders’ Cup Classic. NTRA & Breeders’ Cup CEO Greg Avioli said of the expansion of the event, “Today’s marketplace demands change, innovation, and the willingness to take chances. The Breeders’ Cup board has embraced this and is giving us the freedom and responsibility to take the event to the next level” (DAILY RACING FORM, 1/8). Breeders’ Cup Senior Dir of Event Communications Jim Gluckson said that the event “is working with ESPN ... to show the three new Friday races.” Gluckson: “The details should be announced in the coming weeks.” He added that the event is “looking to sell ticket packages to include both days” (L.A. TIMES, 1/9).

THE LATEST BIG CHANGE: ESPN.com noted the expansion comes on the heels of “dramatic and innovative changes for the Breeders’ Cup during the past 12 months.” Those include the increase of purses from $14M to $20M; the Breeders’ Cup Challenge, which “will allow winners of 24 officially sanctioned races at six tracks to gain automatic berths in the Breeders’ Cup World Championships under a win-and-you’re-in format;” and “unprecedented promotion” from ESPN (ESPN.com, 1/8). Avioli hopes the event will “grow to 16 races worth $30[M] and indicated some interest in taking the event outside of the USA in the next decade” (USA TODAY, 1/9). Breeders’ Cup BOD Chair Bill Farish said, “The whole reason for doing this is to grow the brand and the awareness of the Breeders’ Cup. We think the Friday adds something. It gives more people a chance to participate in the Breeders’ Cup as a whole.” He added that one of the goals of adding the Friday races was to “create a situation similar to Kentucky Oaks Day at Churchill Downs.” The Oaks is run the Friday before the Kentucky Derby and attracts over 100,000 fans. Farish: “We are trying to create a racing-festival-type atmosphere” (N.Y. TIMES, 1/9).

MONMOUTH EFFECTS: NJSEA Senior VP/Racing Dennis Dowd said that it is “only fitting the change starts at Monmouth [Park], because he and his staff hatched the idea of making the event bigger and better than ever.” Monmouth Park VP & GM Bob Kulina said he expects 25,000-30,000 fans for the Friday races and for the Saturday races to sell out at 45,000. The capacity for both days “will be limited to around that number because of the number of corporate tents that will dominate the grounds.” Kulina said, “(Friday) will be a big day. It’s a chance for people who can’t get tickets for Saturday to get a taste of the Breeders’ Cup” (Newark STAR-LEDGER, 1/9). Breeders’ Cup VP/Event Management Damon Thayer said, “There will be a revenue share (for Friday) that we’re still working on with Monmouth Park. It will definitely benefit them to host this first-ever BC Friday” (Louisville COURIER-JOURNAL, 1/9).