Breeders’ Cup can’t shun synthetic surfaces
Some smart people in horse racing insist this will be the last Breeders’ Cup raced over a synthetic surface, that the two-year run on Santa Anita’s Pro Ride track has been a disaster.
My response is don’t bet on that.
My opinion has nothing to do with whether I’m for or against synthetic surfaces. But I can add and subtract dollar signs. So believe me when I say there will be future Breeders’ Cups on synthetic surfaces.
The company that operates the Breeders’ Cup is in many ways like the International Olympic Committee: It is guaranteed to make money from the event, but the host city, or, in racing’s case, the host track, is barely guaranteed anything.
In today’s economy, many tracks scrambling just to survive are much less willing to take a significant financial gamble for the privilege of hosting the Breeders’ Cup.
The Breeders’ Cup will soon announce a rotation of host tracks to allow it to circle the wagons, so to speak. For certain, those tracks will include Belmont Park, Churchill Downs and Santa Anita.
Some of the most financially solvent tracks that might be willing to accept the host role include Arlington, Del Mar, Keeneland and Woodbine. Notice something in common? They all have a synthetic surface main track.
I don’t view this as a negative the way many others seem to.
The Breeders’ Cup World Championships have finally been just that these two years at Santa Anita, attracting top-class racehorses from around the world.
That’s encouraging for the long-term health of horse racing. The globalization of American racing can only help the sport rebound and grow.
Thus, the recent agreement to allow Betfair’s worldwide customer base to bet common pool into the Breeders’ Cup is exciting news. This can be a crucial step in boosting overall revenue.
Major sports leagues such as the NFL and NBA are expanding their brand to other continents, so why not horse racing, which might be the most global of all sports?
The international simulcast market would dwarf what we wager here in the United States.
Wouldn’t it be refreshing for the U.S. to export a product, namely horse racing, that the foreign marketplace would be willing to buy instead of the other way around?
• HRTV — Horse Racing Television’s live feed is now available on broadband at hrtv.com.
HRTV is offering an introductory rate of 12 months of service for $49.99.
Richard Eng’s horse racing column is published Friday in the Las Vegas Review-Journal. He can be reached at rich_eng@hotmail.com.