By John Stuart
The most important asset the horse industry has are the brands of the Kentucky Derby and the Triple Crown. Nothing else comes close in our dying business. Nothing in Major League Baseball, the Indy 500 or the Masters can match the number of TV viewers every year for the Derby. Outside of the Super Bowl (115 million viewers) and the NBA Finals (17.8 million), one couldn't spend enough money to get 16 million TV viewers for a sporting event today in America. When a horse wins the Preakness and the Derby, TV viewers increase by 75% for the Belmont.
In this industry, we take the Triple Crown for granted and as an industry we do very little today to promote it and make it better. In the past, we had the three racing entities working together through an organization known as Triple Crown Productions. No longer–in fact, track management don't even speak to one another. Sure, the Derby and Preakness are televised by NBC and the Belmont by Fox, but that doesn't mean closer coordination can't help the product. Leaders from all three racetracks have told me recently they could work together now.
The states of New York and Maryland have committed over $400 million apiece to upgrade the racing product in their states. They see the need for their Triple Crown races. The year 2027 offers a great opportunity for our industry to make the Triple Crown great again. If some racing organization or racing leader wants to create a lasting legacy, get these three tracks together and space out the races. I reckon 80% of our fans recognize the need for the Preakness to be three weeks or more after the Derby. Recreate Triple Crown Productions. Remember, they got Chrysler and Visa to offer a $5-million bonus for a Triple Crown winner.
More importantly, create a national bet, and make the modern-day bookies give some profits back to the Triple Crown entity to fund it. The point leader that runs in all three events earns a big bonus. You can bet on it before the Derby, then make new bets after the Derby and Preakness. Hey, and what about a Triple Crown series for the fillies? That would be easy!
–John Stuart is the owner of Bluegrass Thoroughbred Services
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