Keeneland, Del Mar Tabbed as New BC Hosts

Officials at Breeders’ Cup Limited made it official Tuesday morning, announcing that iconic Keeneland Race Course in Lexington, Kentucky, will play host to the 2015 World Championships. Additionally, Breeders’ Cup confirmed that the 2016 championships will be staged again at Santa Anita Park in Arcadia, California, and that the 2017 event will remain in the Golden State and be held for the first time at Del Mar Racetrack. 

“As part of our strategic three-year host site plan, we are very pleased to announce Keeneland as the host venue for the 2015 Breeders’ Cup World Championships,” said Breeders’ Cup Chairman Bill Farish. “Throughout its storied history, Keeneland has developed an extraordinary reputation for delivering a first-class racing and hospitality product. We are excited to bring the Breeders’ Cup home to Lexington and are energized by the support from the local community and the breeders of Central Kentucky who have been such a vital part of our program since its inception.” 

The 2015 renewal will mark the first time that Keeneland will host the Breeders’ Cup and will represent the first new venue since 2007, when Monmouth Park became a first-time host. Earlier this year, officials at Keeneland announced that the Polytrack in place at the track since 2006 would be removed in favor of a ‘state-of-the-art’ conventional dirt surface, a move many saw as a necessary first step towards attracting the Breeders’ Cup to Central Kentucky. 

“The Breeders’ Cup at Keeneland is a homecoming for many of these great champions who were foaled and raised at Central Kentucky farms, and often sold at Keeneland,” said Keeneland President and CEO Bill Thomason, who noted that 77 Breeders’ Cup winners had gone through the Keeneland sales ring. “The Keeneland team feels that sense of connection and history with the Breeders’ Cup, and we look forward to offering fans an extraordinary racing and entertainment experience.” 

The 2015 Breeders’ Cup will be held Oct. 30 and 31. 

Del Mar will host its first-ever Breeders’ Cup Nov. 3 and 4, 2017. That track has also announced its intention to remove its synthetic main track and is also in the process of installing a new turf course which is being widened to accommodate additional runners. 

For Del Mar President and General Manager Joe Harper, bringing a Breeders’ Cup to Del Mar is the culmination of a decades-long dream. 

“I can’t tell you how excited we are,” he said. “This is a dream come true for us. I remember back in the 80’s when [Breeders’ Cup founder] John Gaines actually came out to Del Mar for a meeting to discuss his idea with a number of owners and breeders who were here at the time. I think I took some notes, because [since then] I kept thinking, ‘How can we get a Breeders’ Cup here?’ There’s been a lot of money spent on this facility–not just the grandstand, but the racetracks and now we’ve got this opportunity and we’re really looking forward to it–especially to be in the company of two such great tracks as Keeneland and Santa Anita. We’re proud to be here with them.” 

Santa Anita, which staged the 2013 Breeders’ Cup and will do so again this coming Oct. 31 and Nov. 1, will host the championships for a record ninth time in 2016. 

“We have created a lot of new renovations and there will be a few more new renovations before we host this year,” noted Santa Anita President Tom Ludt. “We continue to be a proud partner. We feel like we’ve shown that we know how to handle this event very well–it goes well and the feedback’s great. It’s a pleasure to be in a great place where the media and the world likes to come and be entertained.” 

During an NTRA teleconference yesterday, Craig Fravel, current Breeders’ Cup President and CEO and a former Del Mar executive, offered: “Whenever there’s an industry need or industry project [Santa Anita Park owner] The Stronach Group, Keeneland and Del Mar are the first to raise their hands. So it’s a distinct pleasure for us to be working with these groups. It’s very exciting to have two new venues. I can tell you that management and staff are very excited at the challenge of trying something new and think that that infectious enthusiasm will translate no only our horsemen, but fans as well and really show the Breeders’ Cup in the best possible way at each venue.” 

When asked, Fravel downplayed the notion that the move by Keeneland to return to a conventional dirt surface for the fall of 2014 and by Del Mar to switch back to dirt for its 2015 meet influenced the Breeders’ Cup’s host site decision. 

“The Breeders’ Cup has never taken a position either favoring or disfavoring a particular surface,” he said. “What we’ve taken positions on is favoring safety and surfaces and adaptations of the surfaces that we think will put on the best racing product. The decisions made by both Del Mar and Keeneland were made independent of the Breeders’ Cup. Obviously, we wanted to know what the timing was and what their plans were and how they were addressing safety concerns and design, but beyond that, our role was informational only and not part of the decision-making process.” 

Temporary seating at Keeneland is expected to accommodate more than 9,500 additional attendees, including 7,000 premium seats featuring 250 temporary loge boxes that will hold six people each. There will a total of 21,000 reserved seats. Keeneland has not yet set a limit on the number of general admission tickets that can be sold for the Breeders’ Cup. Additional seating will also be available on the Keeneland grounds at its sales pavilion and entertainment center. Click here for the Keeneland Breeders’ Cup seating diagram. 

“We’ve got a talented racetrack team and a talented team of people who have spent their careers and take such pride in enhancing the patron experience,” said Thomason. “So, the thing that Keeneland is most excited about is taking those values we have in a community that feels so strongly about the horse with fans who understand the industry and the horse and appreciate it unlike any other. To be able to merge those common goals that we both have for enhancing live racing and the experience of our patrons to grow the Breeders’ Cup as a brand, to grow the Thoroughbred industry as a sport, and coming into a community that we know is going to embrace the opportunity with as much passion as we’ve got. So we are really looking forward with great anticipation to 2015.” 

Several Breeders’ Cup races will be run at different distances at Keeneland than they have before. The GI Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile will be contested over Keeneland’s seven-furlong and 184 ft. Beard Course, while the GI Breeders’ Cup F/M Turf–previously held at either 1 1/4 miles or 1 3/8 miles depending on the venue–will be run over 1 3/16 miles in 2015. The GI Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint, having been run at 6 1/2 furlongs at Santa Anita and five furlongs at Churchill Downs, will take place over 5 1/2 panels in Lexington. 

While the Breeders’ Cup has recently positioned its race cards so that the featured GI Breeders’ Cup Classic takes place in prime time, Keeneland does not have lights to accommodate evening or night racing. 

“Our planning for Keeneland contemplates a day-time event,” said Fravel. “We think that it will be very well-suited to the East Coast and that’s where we’re headed in 2015.” 

When reached for comment regarding other special events being planned around the 2015 Breeders’ Cup, Thomason said that Keeneland was “already working with farms and downtown establishments on some exciting activities as well as some regional opportunities,” but that nothing had been finalized. 

Keeneland typically hosts its November Breeding Stock Sale during the week after the Breeders’ Cup directly after Fasig-Tipton’s November Sale. While neither company has announced dates for their 2015 sales, there is no expectation of a significant date change. 

Del Mar will also add additional seating, but exact plans have not yet been announced. 

“We have a half-a-million square feet of grandstand right now, so we feel pretty comfortable with what we have,” offered Joe Harper. “We’re obviously going to augment our high-end seating. Our plan is to put in more luxury suites and we have considerable room at the west end for temporary seating.” 

For more, visit breederscup.com/future-host-sites.