Claiming Races

A proposed change to claiming rules in New York would double the time that a claimed horse must refrain from racing outside the state, from 30 to 60 days. In addition, in an effort to make it easier to acquire Thoroughbreds via claims, another proposed change would extend time periods for owners to be eligible to claim horses. Those measures, plus several other tweaks to the "Who may make claim" rule 4038.1, were advanced by the New York State Gaming Commission (NYSGC) at Thursday's monthly meeting. There was zero discussion...

The Week In Review, by T.D. Thornton Does Kentucky need to do something to stop the outflux of horses leaving the state after being claimed? And will any attempt at corrective action by rewriting regulations result in unintended consequences that could create their own problems? Those questions were up for debate last week when the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission (KHRC)'s rule committee met to kick around ideas that could surface in a near-future proposal. Commissioner Frank Jones, Jr., the rules committee chair, said that last year 779 Thoroughbreds were claimed...

In a meeting in Frankfort Friday, the Pari Mutuel Wagering Taxation Task Force, led by State Senator and majority floor leader Damon Thayer, outlined the advantages of allowing Kentucky-breds in claiming races to receive purse supplements. Claiming races currently are not eligible to have Kentucky Thoroughbred Development Fund (KTDF) supplements added to their purses. "You need claiming horses in order to provide the opportunities for allowance and stakes horses," said Rick Hiles, president of the Kentucky Horsemen's Benevolent & Protective Association (KHBPA). "It's time to acknowledge their important role and...

A streamlining of the claiming process for Irish claiming races, to speed up post-race procedures, has been instituted by Horse Racing Ireland and the new regulations will go into effect on Nov. 2. Pre-authorisation on the day of the race will be required for all potential claimants. The claimant's contact details, the name of the designated trainer for the horse they wish to claim, the name of the person responsible for collecting and transporting the claimed horse and the value of the horse they wish to claim should be submitted...

Effective Friday, May 28, the voided claim rule at Gulfstream Park has been expanded. "All claimed horses will now be examined by the Track Veterinarian after cooling out, and the claim will be voided if the horse is observed to have bled or is determined to be unsound," explained the Florida HPBA in a release. "After the Track Veterinarian notifies the Stewards that the claim has been voided, the successful claimant has a 15-minute grace period to request that the claim be allowed." Previously, claims at Gulfstream were only voided...

In a sport crying out for more strict, no-nonsense regulators and administrators, Maryland Jockey Club president Sal Sinatra fits the bill. Just in the past week and a half, Sinatra has made major waves in the industry, first by calling for the eventual end to claiming races at The Jockey Club Round Table and then by busting Wayne Potts for "paper training" for a banned trainer in Maryland. Wednesday, Sinatra joined the TDN Writers' Room presented by Keeneland as the Green Group Guest of the Week to discuss an array...

Over the last few days an idea has been floated to replace the current American claiming system with that of a rating system. With a list of concerns and questions in my head, two things jump out immediately as being stifled by a rating system: Ease of access to horses and the possibility of growth for both potential new owners and smaller trainers. In my opinion these are two things American racing does better than anywhere in the world.  Why do we want to change this to be more like...

The highly successful "Ship and Win" program is back for its 10th season at Del Mar with its guaranteed bonus package and purse incentives to all horsemen who import out-of-state runners to race at the shore oval in 2020. The "Ship and Win" program, initially started in 2011, offers all qualifying runners an automatic "first start" check for $2,000, then further provides a 20% bonus payment on top of whatever purse monies (first through fifth) they earn in that start, excluding stakes races. Those 20% purse bonuses apply for all...

In addition to the news about the GI Belmont S. and stakes schedule at the upcoming Belmont meet, the New York Racing Association announced new safety initiatives and entry rule changes for the 25-day meet. Among them are new rules for horses coming off of long layoffs and horses making belated career debuts. Horses which have not started in more than 180 days, but fewer than 365 days, will be placed on the Veterinarians' List and must be presented to the NYRA Veterinarian prior to racing, while horses which have...