Confederate wins again - this time breaking the world record for a 3yo. Went 1.46.1!!!
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Confederate wins again - this time breaking the world record for a 3yo. Went 1.46.1!!!
USA is certainly increasing their exposure thanks to Fox Sports 2
For only the second time, harness racing will be featured on Fox Sports 2 (FS2) on back-to-back nights. What makes this weekend’s shows unique is for the first time they are originating from two different tracks.
The Meadowlands will kick off the broadcast doubleheader tonight (Sept. 8). On Saturday (Sept. 9), Scioto Downs will make their FS2 debut.
According to the New York Racing Association’s (NYRA) senior director of TV broadcast operations Eric Donovan, a weekend like this would not have been possible without their existing rapport with The Meadowlands president/chief executive officer Jeff Gural.
“If we didn’t have that first year [2021] with The Meadowlands, I don’t think there’s Breeders Crown coverage last year [at Woodbine Mohawk Park],” said Donovan. “I don’t think there’s the general appeal to the industry and then reaching across to the Caesar’s properties and then the Little Brown Jug, and possibly something at Red Mile, too.
“So, yeah, I mean, it all started with that relationship with The Meadowlands and we’re very, very appreciative of all the support we’ve gotten from Jeff and his team, and, I hope we’ve been able to deliver for him.”
Gural had felt for a long time that harness racing belonged on national TV more than just once a year and in 2021 his relationship with NYRA produced a two-hour Meadowlands Pace show on FS2 (detailed here in HRU).
Following the success of that inaugural broadcast, the next month there was a Hambletonian “look in” on FS2 and then three-and-a-half hours of Breeders Crown coverage on Saturday (Oct. 30).
It wasn’t until last year with the Crown from Woodbine Mohawk Park, that the broadcast expanded outside the border of The Meadowlands, opening up a slew of possibilities to NYRA and the rest of industry.
This year, the broadcast offerings broadened even further adding the Dan Patch from Hoosier Park in August to the eight shows — plus a cut-in on Hambletonian Day — already on the schedule with The Meadowlands.
https://harnessracingupdate.com/2023...s-tv-exposure/
It's all how harness is sold. If it's sold as a glamorous, shiny exciting prospect with data and facts to build interest and conversation, then yeh it will fit in perfect on Fox Sports. If it's shown with grainy, dull filmed from 2000m away footage with moths buzzing about then no, it wont gain traction. We will never grow as a sport with the poor quality of footage and poorly lit tracks that we currently have regionally.Quote:
Originally Posted by Messenger
Too much football on the weekend and finally catching up with The Little Brown Jug
In the final Stay Hungry had 3 runners while Sweet Lou and Huntsville had 2 each, with a Captain Treacherous and an All Bets Off (Bettors) the other 2
Seven Colors (Stay Hungry) and Cannibal (Sweet Lou) were pretty much equal favourites but it was another Sweet Lou runner - It's My Show that took the prize
In the Eliminations, Captain Treacherous's Ken Hanover paced the fastest mile ever in Jug history in 1.48.4 (1.48.8)
https://harnesslink.com/usa/its-my-s...tle-brown-jug/
The USTA are now supporting the introduction of a new bill: The Racehorse Health and Safety Act
They have never supported HISA
They claim -
"After HISA was fully implemented this May, 12 horses died in six weeks at Churchill Downs Racetrack, home of the Kentucky Derby. Even though HISA admitted the racetrack was in “full compliance” with its racetrack safety rules, Churchill Downs was shut down, and races were moved to another track. Under HISA’s watch other racing fatalities occurred at Triple Crown racetracks and at prominent tracks in Maryland and New York. Despite spending $66.5 million this year, the HISA Authority recently failed to identify the cause of the problem."
https://ustrottingnews.com/racehorse...hisas-failure/
$800kUS for a yearling trotting filly by a first season sire
https://ustrottingnews.com/kadena-se...selected-sale/
It equaled the filly record set in 2021 by Exile - not found on ClassicFamilies so I don't know that Exile has raced
$700kUS for a Captaintreacherous yearling filly set a new pacing filly record
The previous record of $625k was for Laugh A Day in 1983 - she only ever won $38,555
It would appear that USA harness continues to do a good job of putting itself out there
Breeders Crown on Fox Sports 2 this Friday and Satureday
https://ustrottingnews.com/breeders-...-and-saturday/
Confederate (Sweet Lou) again in the 3yo C&G Breeders Crown - making it 12 wins from 13 starts this season and nearly $2m in earnings
https://harnesslink.com/usa/confeder...rs-crown-romp/
https://harnesslink.com/usa/for-imme...nds-racetrack/
The following is just a couple of extracts
Meadowlands Releases Names On Exclusion List (There are 33 trainers on the list!)
East Rutherford, NJ – November 3, 2023 – The United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, the Hon. Mary Kay Vyskocil, has entered Orders of Conviction for Seth Fishman and Lisa Giannelli each having been charged as Defendants in the matter of United States v. Navarro, Docket No. 1:20-cr-00160-MKV– SDNY.
Damian Williams, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, who prosecuted these cases, announced at the time that Seth Fishman DVM received a sentence of 11 years in prison for his role at the helm of an approximately twenty-year scheme to manufacture, market, and sell to racehorse trainers and others in the racehorse industry “untestable” performance enhancing drugs for use in professional horseracing.
Also, as part of its investigation, the Federal government conducted its own collection of blood and urine samples from racehorses, both post-race and from out of competition testing. Below is a list under the category, Drug Positives Federal Investigation, identifying trainers whose horses tested positive in those tests.
This remains a serious matter. Consequently, the Meadowlands is conducting its own internal investigation given these revelations. And until that investigation is completed, the Meadowlands has determined that all individuals listed below will be placed on the Meadowlands exclusion list.
https://harnesslink.com/usa/gural-to...-fire-victims/
IMO The best thing for this grub , if convicted is to put him in a barn & set it alight. Obviously making sure he can not get out!!!!
Terrible , those poor horses . Very sad .