Churchill Downs Inc.

A longtime racetrack employee and the current Clerk of Scales at Churchill Downs Inc.-owned Presque Isle Downs in Erie, Pennsylvania was suspended by the Pennsylvania State Horse Racing Commission's Bureau of Thoroughbred Horse Racing for 30 days beginning Jan. 8. Danny Hamilton was found by the stewards to have neglected to weigh-out jockeys before the eighth race Oct. 11. Director of Enforcement Jason Klouser, who led the investigation, said, "The Racing Commission's investigators observed Danny Hamilton failing to weigh-out the jockeys for race 8, which is a violation of numerous...

The 27-day live racing season at Colonial Downs for 2024 will be held over nine weeks from Thursday, July 11 through Saturday, Sept. 7 as approved by the Virginia Racing Commission, the track said in a release Wednesday. Like last season, the New Kent site will race three days per week, Thursday through Saturday. "The success of the 2023 meet, which brought weekend racing back to Colonial Downs, was a credit to the tremendous support here in Virginia from the owners, trainers, horseplayers, hard-working staff and partners," said Senior Director...

Friday's GI Longines Kentucky Oaks card at Churchill Downs set a record, with all-sources handle for the day of racing reaching $74.9 million--up from last year's record $74.6 million. All-sources wagering on the Oaks specifically was $22.4 million, down from the record set 12 months ago of $24.3 million. Attendance was a reported 106,381. "Congratulations to the connections of Pretty Mischievous on today's win," said Churchill Downs President Mike Anderson. "The 149th Kentucky Oaks will be remembered as a memorable day of racing on a near-perfect Kentucky day. Today's success...

Responding to a legal filing in which Churchill Downs, Inc. (CDI), alleged that a court-mandated lifting of Bob Baffert's ban from competing in the GI Kentucky Derby would harm the connections of other qualifying points earners who would "lose their fairly-earned berths in the Derby to make room for Baffert," the Hall-of-Fame trainer's legal team fired back with a written response on Friday claiming that CDI "appears to misunderstand its own rules," regarding the qualifying system. "CDI argues that an injunction would force it to 'reallocate' points and 'deprive' owners...

The gaming corporation that controls the GI Kentucky Derby fired the latest legal salvo in trainer Bob Baffert's ongoing attempt to reverse the second year of a two-year ban the company imposed in 2021 because of a spate of drug positives in Grade I races, urging a federal judge not to grant an injunction that would lift the ban in time for the May 6 Derby. "Baffert refuses to accept responsibility for his wrongful actions..." Churchill Downs Inc. (CDI) wrote in a brief opposing Baffert's motion for a preliminary injunction...

The developer advising Chicago's mayor is proposing a $2.2-billion renovation proposal that includes a glass stadium dome to keep the city's National Football League team, the Bears, at its longtime downtown location, Soldier Field. The website Front Office Sports published details Jan. 8. The news is of peripheral interest to horse racing enthusiasts, because the Bears have otherwise entered into a purchase agreement to instead build a $5-billion stadium on the site of the former Arlington International Racecourse. Although the specifics of the proposal are new, city officials have been...

In order to help finance the essential programs of the Backside Learning Center at Churchill Downs (BLC), The Louisville Thoroughbred Society (LTS) will sponsor a public auction of donated items Friday, Dec. 16 from 6 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. ET. The Pressbox will provide phone numbers and the staff, while their website updates bidding every five minutes. Some of the highlighted items include horse blankets from Triple Crown winners American Pharoah and Justify, as well as one used by Spendthrift Farm's leading sire, Into Mischief. Also on the block, will...

Five months after New Hampshire gambling regulators and the state's attorney general disclosed that they were investigating the TwinSpires advance deposit wagering (ADW) platform over concerns that the Churchill Downs, Inc. (CDI)-owned entity has operated for years without being explicitly licensed there, TwinSpires is ceasing operations in the Granite State. Back in April, Charlie McIntyre, the executive director of the New Hampshire Lottery, which regulates all forms of gambling in the state, told WMUR-TV that "They're not regulated by us, nor do they operate on any confines of state law.......

By 2026, the gaming corporation that owns Colonial Downs is aiming to nearly double the amount of racing at the turf-centric Virginia track, potentially expanding the current boutique-styled summer race meet from 27 to 50 dates. That news was revealed Thursday morning by Bill Carstanjen, the chief executive officer of Churchill Downs, Inc. (CDI), who briefly mentioned the dates increase during a public quarterly earnings conference call with investment bankers. The reason has everything to do with CDI's gaming revenue and apparently very little do with the overall scope of...

The first items in a massive online-only auction of the contents of Arlington International Racecourse have been listed for bidding. The sales process, which is scheduled to take place over the next few months in up to 15 separate "events" grouped by asset type, is beginning with food-service and kitchen items. The coveted big-ticket racing-related offerings--marker poles, finish lines, signage, artworks, and even starting gates--will be among the last batches of items to be sold. "We're going to be targeting nostalgia and memorabilia items mid-September," said Judd Grafe, who runs...

Trainer Bob Baffert has filed a lawsuit in U.S. District Court for the Western District of Kentucky against Churchill Downs Inc. (CDI), CDI CEO Bill Carstanjen and CDI Board Chair Alex Rankin. Baffert is seeking a preliminary or permanent injunction that will enjoin Churchill from barring him. At present, Baffert cannot compete in the 2022 or 2023 runnings of the GI Kentucky Derby or any other races at Churchill or Churchill-owned tracks. He  is also fighting a separate action from the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission, which suspended him for 90...

Bill Carstanjen, the chief executive officer of Churchill Downs, Inc. (CDI), said during a quarterly conference call with investors Feb. 24 that after only a brief foray into online sports betting, the gaming corporation plans to phase out operating in that sector by mid-2022. "When the U.S. Supreme Court overturned the federal ban on sports betting in May of 2018, we had high hopes for the potential to build a profitable business in this space," Carstanjen said. "Our initial strategy was to leverage a variable cost technology model and be...