MSA

In an abrupt switch of plans that had seemed cemented for the past year as part of the $400-million "Pimlico Plus" rebuild of Maryland's Thoroughbred racing infrastructure, the Maryland Stadium Authority (MSA) is abandoning plans to convert its recently purchased Shamrock Farm in Carroll County into an 800-horse training center, and will instead buy Laurel Park from The Stronach Group (TSG) with the intention of turning it into an 1,100-horse training facility. With Pimlico Race Course now demolished and projected to be rebuilt in time for the 2027 GI Preakness...

Bill Knauf is the president and general manager of the non-profit Maryland Jockey Club Inc., (MJC), which took over the management of Laurel Park and Pimlico Race Course this year. It's a time of tremendous transition in that state, with Pimlico currently being demolished and rebuilt with the goal of all commercial-track Thoroughbred racing in Maryland moving to the new Baltimore venue by 2027. Laurel will then close for racing and training, and a new training facility at Shamrock Farm in Carroll County will be built. Knauf updated TDN on...

The structural demolition necessary for the Redevelopment of the Pimlico Racing Facility project began on July 24 with the razing of the existing barns and outbuildings adjacent to Winner Avenue, according to a Maryland Stadium Authority release Thursday. Clark Construction Group, LLC, MSA's Construction Manager, is tasked with the demolition. The demolition package was approved by the MSA Board of Directors and the Maryland Board of Public Works in May 2025. After the completion of the 150th Preakness Stakes, the operator and all horses moved out of the facility, the...

On Wednesday, Dec. 4 at the age of 65, the owner of Midwest Thoroughbreds, Richard J. Papiese, passed away after a battle with Multiple System Atrophy (MSA), according to the Elmwood Chapel & Crematory website. The co-owner of Midwest Custom Case, Inc., a store fixture manufacturing company in Monee, Illinois, Papiese started Midwest Thoroughbreds with his wife Karen in 2003. Over the next 18 years across numerous tracks, the stable earned almost $53 million. In 2012, Midwest established a new single-season record which still stands with 542 wins. Top horses...