PHRC

In response to winter weather cancellations earlier in December, Parx Racing, along with the PTHA and the Pennsylvania Horse Racing Commission, has added three Thursday race dates for January 2026, January 8, January 15, and January 22, the track announced Wednesday. "Winter racing always comes with challenges, and flexibility is critical," said David Osojnak, Parx Director of Racing. "Adding these January race days allows us to respond constructively to December's weather-related cancellations while continuing to support our program and  horsemen to deliver a consistent racing product. We try to help...

Parx will begin installing a new turf course in March with the goal of racing on it by late summer 2026. There has been no grass racing at Parx since September 2024. In August of that season the course was closed after a catastrophic equine injury during a stakes resulted in a euthanization, triggering a safety review by the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority (HISA). The track was cleared to reopen by HISA within several weeks, with Parx agreeing to put new protocols and maintenance procedures in place. But another...

Todd Mostoller, the executive director of the Pennsylvania Horsemen's Benevolent and Protective Association (PHBPA), painted a dire economic picture of the state's Thoroughbred and Standardbred racing industries on Tuesday when he told commissioners at the monthly meeting of the Pennsylvania Horse Racing Commission (PHRC) that the 20-year-old legislative funding mechanism for purses has become "cannibalized" by increased competition among casinos that is harming the state's Race Horse Development Fund (RHDF). "The business model that was created by Act 71 [the Pennsylvania Race Horse Development and Gaming Act of 2004] that...

A federal bill aimed at replacing the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act (HISA) with a regulatory system modeled around an interstate compact is reportedly in the pipeline. The president of the United States Trotting Association (USTA), Russell Williams, disclosed the news about the pending legislation Mar. 21 during a special meeting of the Pennsylvania Horse Racing Commission (PHRC). Williams addressed the PHRC Tuesday just prior to the board voting in favor of entering into three nine-month agreements with the HISA Authority that pertain to the Racetrack Safety Program, the Horseracing...