Purse Increases

The New York Racing Association, Inc. (NYRA) will significantly increase purses on overnight races during the fall meet at the new Belmont Park, which will open for live racing Sept. 18, the track said via a Thursday press release. NYRA has increased purses in the open allowance category by 15 percent from $100,000 to $115,000. In addition, first-level optional-claiming events will be offered for $105,000 and second-level optional-claiming races will be offered for $108,000. Maiden special weight races will receive an 18 percent increase from $85,000 to $100,000, while New...

Edited Press Release Gulfstream Park's Royal Palm Meet will offer substantial increases in overnight purses as well as bonuses in open stakes and Florida-bred races and stakes as part of a $6-million Florida-Bred Incentive Fund (FBIF). Overall, the Royal Palm Meet, which runs through Aug. 30, will offer total stakes purses of $2.9 million plus an additional $575,000 ($25,000 per race) to any Florida-bred finishing in the top five in 23 summer stakes. The percentage of purse money for those top five Florida-breds will be 50%-30%-11%-6%-3%. On the heels of...

Purse levels will be raised by nearly 14 percent blended across all categories during the Belmont Stakes Racing Festival and throughout the summer meet at Saratoga Racecourse, it was announced by The New York Racing Association, Inc. (NYRA) on Thursday. Purses for open maiden special weights will increase by 15%, from $100,000 to $115,000. In addition, first-level allowance events will be offered for $120,000 and second-level allowance races will be offered for $125,000. NYRA will increase purses for the maiden allowance auction category to $90,000, a 12.5% increase. Initially launched...

Horse Racing Alberta will add over $400,000 into the Breed Improvement pools bringing the total to $2,829,990 which signals a record level of support for the industry, the Canadian Thoroughbred Horse Society said in Wednesday press release. The increase is part of a broader strategy to enhance the competitive edge of Alberta-bred horses both locally and on larger stages. For the first time in history, the Alberta Fall Classic races will see an increase in stakes purses from $50,000 to $60,000. Additionally, a new North American bonus will offer a...

Fair Grounds has bumped purses for the GII Risen Star Stakes and the GIII Lecomte Stakes--both "Road to the Kentucky Derby" points races--in advance of the track's 153rd season. The Risen Star will be increased from $400,000 to $500,000 and the Lecomte upped from $200,000 to $250,000. With eight existing stakes getting a $25,000 boost, a total of $325,000 in increases is scheduled for the track's 63-race stakes program, totaling $8.875 million in purses during the 76-day Thoroughbred meet. "The Louisiana Road to the Derby and Oaks has established itself...

Kentucky Downs plans to increase purses for nine of its 18 stakes by a total of $3.7 million from what was originally announced, pending regulatory approval, according to a press release from the track early on Thursday morning. Leading the way is the GIII Nashville Derby Invitational, bumped from $2.5 million to $3.1 million. That would make the 1 5/16-mile stakes North America's second-richest race, for Kentucky-breds, behind only the $5 million GI Kentucky Derby among races held at one track. The Nashville Derby already was America's richest turf race...

The 2024 Breeders' Cup Challenge Series: Win and You're In will consist of 82 races in 12 countries and host track Del Mar will run six on a schedule with several new additions, the organization announced via release Monday. In its 18th year, the Win and You're In (WAYI) program gives each winner an automatic qualifying position with fees paid into the corresponding race at the 2024 World Championships. In addition to the domestic schedule, forty-one international races will be held at premier tracks in Argentina, Brazil, Canada, Chile, England,...

An increase in purses, totaling $500,000, have been approved for the 2024 racing season at Fingers Lakes, according to the Finger Lakes Gaming & Racetrack and the Finger Lakes Horsemen's Benevolent and Protective Association Wednesday. Pending New York State Gaming Commission approval, the 63rd season is slated to kick off Monday, Apr. 29 Beginning with the first condition book, $5,000 claimers that are non-winners of the year or non-winners of four lifetime races will compete for $14,000, a $1,400 or 11% increase over 2023 levels. A total of 127 races...

Worldwide commingled wagering on U.S. races fell year-to-date in 2023 by 2.81% from $5,288,282,017 last year to $5,139,620,402 this year when compared to corresponding figures in 2022. Paid-out purses rose by 2.85% as the number of race days fell by 1.87% and the number of races fell slightly from 12,515 in 2022 to 12,353 in 2023. The average available purses per race day experienced the most significant increase, a bump of almost 9% to $331,188 from 2022's $303,894. Average field size also rose from 7.33 starters in 2022 to 7.47...

Prize money for Hong Kong's 2023/24 racing season will rise by 8 per cent with increases coming across every class of competition; Griffins to Class 1 and the 4-year-old Classic Series will have an additional HK$94 million on offer. Including bonuses--but not reflecting Hong Kong's Group 1 races, the seven elite contests featured at Longines Hong Kong International Races, FWD Champions Day, and Group 2 and Group 3 races--the figure will grow to HK$1.38 billion next season. Details of the prize money structure, which will include Group racing, will be...

Santa Anita's winter meet, dubbed the 'Classic Race Meeting,' will open on its traditional Dec. 26 date with a new minimum stakes purse of $100,000 for both dirt and turf black-type events. In addition, allowance races will get a boost, with all open allowances set at $85,000 and first- through third-condition allowances run for purses ranging from $72,000 to $76,000. It is the largest purse structure in Santa Anita's 88-year history. "There's no denying that expenses are up, across the board, in all facets of our economy," said Santa Anita...

The Pennsylvania Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association (PTHA), in collaboration with Parx Racing, has announced several purse increases starting in the November condition book, along with the addition of five new stakes races in late November, including three for Thanksgiving Eve, Nov. 23, and two on Tuesday, Nov. 29. "The increased purses and additional stakes races are the result of higher than forecast handle throughout the year, including the record-breaking handle for Pennsylvania Derby Day," said Jeff Matty, Executive Director of the PTHA. "Increasing these purses, especially our state-bred purses, will allow...