Down In The Backstretch: Preakness Attendance, Handle Decline

The Maryland Jockey Club reported 112,222 fans attended Saturday's Preakness Stakes at Pimlico Race Course, the fifth-largest crowd in Preakness history, according to the THOROUGHBRED TIMES. Pimlico in '06 and '07 "set records for attendance," but attendance for this year's event dipped 7.5%. Total all-source handle on the Preakness card was $73,457,510, the fifth-highest in Preakness history, but a 15.8% decrease from $87,194,161 last year. Most of the decline "came from wagering on the Preakness itself," which dropped 19.9% to $45,689,562 from $57,053,079 in '07 (THOROUGHBREDTIMES.com, 5/18). In Baltimore, David Steele reports the attendance marks "eight straight years of 100,000-plus," but the figure is the "lowest in five years and the end of four straight years of increases" (Baltimore SUN, 5/19).

Jockeys Donated $7,500 Earned From NetJets Deal To Jockey Club Foundation

BROWN NOSER: The WALL STREET JOURNAL's Corey Dade reported corporations, including Big Brown sponsor UPS, are facing "increasing criticism for sponsoring major sports events that carry with them some form of controversy." UPS Dir of Sponsorship & Events Ron Rogowski: "Our job isn't to regulate the industry. Inherently with any sponsorship, there is a risk. Do we talk about these things? Sure. But when the opportunity presented itself, we thought it had a tremendous upside for us." Dade noted Big Brown jockey Kent Desormeaux "rides in brown pants with the UPS logo and dons a UPS cap" after he races, and fans at Pimlico Race Course Friday were "already wearing Big Brown T-shirts and hats emblazoned with the UPS logo" (WALL STREET JOURNAL, 5/17).

Print This Article