Atlantic City

These are uncertain times for Monmouth Park. The foal crop is down, their horse population is way down, and they're having trouble filling fields. That's what happens when you are one of many players in an overloaded Mid-Atlantic region and you are the only track that does not get revenue from casinos. (Monmouth does get a $10 million subsidy from the state to prop up purses, but that could be reduced to $2.5 million in 2027). Yet, better news may be around the corner. Bills have been introduced to have...

When Monmouth Park opens its doors for the 2026 season on Saturday, the issues it faces will already be obvious. Only eight races were carded with 63 horses entered. With only 500 to 600 horses on the grounds, the Elkwood section of the backstretch has temporarily been closed. The Long Branch Stakes did not fill, but the racing office salvaged the race and it will be run Sunday with a field of six. Those are just some of the issues facing the picturesque Jersey Shore track as it prepares to...

New Jersey racing has not had it easy, and has not had it easy for a long time. Monmouth was in such dire straits that, after the end of the 2025 meet, there was so little money in its coffers that the track wasn't able to pay horsemen money that was owed to them for months. That problem arose despite the fact Monmouth was receiving an annual $10-million subsidy from the state to supplement purses. Worried that the subsidy, never a sure thing, might go away under the newly elected...

The already struggling racing and breeding industries in New Jersey were hit by potentially devastating news on Wednesday when it was reported that there are bills afloat in the state capital in Trenton that could eventually allow Monmouth Park to reduce its meet to 25 days a year. Is this the beginning of the end for one of the sport's most iconic and picturesque tracks? Not necessarily. (I'll get to that later). But it's hard not to be pessimistic about Monmouth's future. As with so many things that have become...