Pimlico Race Course

Pimlico, the home of a Triple Crown race, is rundown and needs to be torn down and rebuilt. Its sister track, Laurel isn't in much better shape. To have two tracks in such condition does not make for a sustainable model for the future of Maryland racing, a problem that track owners and politicians have been trying solve for more than a decade. But the latest round of give-and-take appears to have yielded a solution. Money once earmarked for a rebuild of both Pimlico and Laurel is expected to be...

Sunrise at Old Hilltop will once again offer fans a unique behind the scenes walking tour of historic Pimlico Race Course this week. Suspended in 2020 and 2021 amidst the pandemic, the popular event returned in 2022. "Everything turned out great. People loved coming back," tour director and guide Fran Burns said. "I think it actually gained popularity because more people had heard about it, either on television or through word of mouth." Admission to the Sunrise at Old Hilltop tours is free and is on a first-come, first-served basis...

Veteran trainer Kieron Magee and five-pound apprentice jockey Axel Concepcion claimed their respective meet titles as Laurel Park closed its spring meet Sunday. Magee, 62, entered the eight-race, closing-day program without a starter, but an 11-8 lead over Jamie Ness in the trainer standings. Hugh McMahon won twice Sunday to pass Ness for second, while Brittany Russell wound up fourth with seven wins. "It feels great because I'm down to 25 horses. To pull off a training title with 25 horses, that takes some doing," Magee said. "I lost a...

Tom Pedulla, who has reported on Thoroughbred racing for more than three decades for numerous publications, will receive the Old Hilltop Award at the Alibi Breakfast May 18 at Pimlico Race Course. The Alibi Breakfast began in the 1930s on the porch of the old Pimlico Clubhouse and features a gathering of media, owners, trainers, jockeys, horsemen and fans to celebrate the Preakness while gaining interesting and humorous race predictions. Pedulla, who started his career keeping box scores at New York Yankees games for Associated Press, became the Yankees beat...

According to an Associated Press report, 1/ST Racing, which owns Gulfstream Park and Santa Anita, intends to bring the Pegasus format to the California in 2024. "I'd really love to see that we bring it to the West Coast," 1/ST President and CEO Belinda Stronach told the AP. "That will probably happen in 2024. What we did this year for 2023 was said, 'OK, we have a number of great race days, let's coordinate those better and call it the 1/ST Racing Tour and recognize great achievements within our own...

Claudio Gonzalez and Jevian Toledo both enjoyed career highs as they defended their titles as the Maryland Jockey Club's leading trainer and jockey, respectively, in 2022. Gonzalez, a 46-year-old cancer survivor from Chile, finished with 74 wins at Laurel Park and Pimlico Race Course to edge Brittany Russell and Jamie Ness, who tied for second with 73 wins apiece. It marked the sixth consecutive year that Gonzalez has led the Maryland standings, averaging 101 wins per season. He captured Laurel's winter stand to open 2022, his 19th individual meet title...

When Crabs N Beer (Blofeld) goes postward against 10 foes in the James W. Murphy S. at Pimlico, he will carry the hopes of small breeders everywhere onto the big stage of the GI Preakness S. undercard Saturday. The 3-year-old gelding is owned by native Marylander Chas Blanford, who has been in the business just six years after taking over the Riders Up Farm of longtime breeder William Fossett. Blanford maintains a broodmare band of five and is dreaming of a first stakes win. "Bill Fossett is not my biological...

Winchell Thoroughbreds' Epicenter (Not This Time) remained on target for Saturday's GI Preakness S. after a 1 1/2-mile gallop at Churchill Downs Sunday morning. "He seems to be pretty sharp," Scott Blasi, who oversees trainer Steve Asmussen's Churchill division, said of the GI Kentucky Derby runner-up and likely Preakness favorite. "I love how he's doing. He galloped today like that was nothing; walked off the track with good energy. We'll put a little work in him and go. Not much to do from here on out.... [but] win." Epicenter had...

Beyond the Wire, a Maryland-based Thoroughbred aftercare program, will be honored with the Maryland Jockey Club's Special Award of Merit during the Alibi Breakfast at Pimlico Thursday. The Special Award of Merit is presented to those who have made a positive impact on the racing industry. Past winners include Hall of Fame horsemen D. Wayne Lukas, Jerry Bailey, Ramon Dominguez and King Leatherbury; late Hall of Fame broadcaster Jim McKay, founder of the Maryland Million; and MJC track photographer Jim McCue. "We are honored and really appreciate the recognition, as...

Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association CEO Alan Foreman joins this week's TDN Writers' Room to talk about the MATCH Series schedule, which kicks off in April at Laurel Park, and give the latest updates on the much-discussed renovation of Pimlico Race Course.

Over 260 riders and their mounts from throughout the Mid-Atlantic region and farther afield cantered, walked and trotted across Pimlico Race Course Sunday, to raise awareness and money for the Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance (TAA) as part of Canter for a Cause. The event, sponsored by the Maryland Jockey Club, saw registered riders go out in one of four groups between 10 a.m. and 3 p.m. to take their horse around Pimlico, as well as walk through the starting gate and get their picture taken in the winner's circle. "The Thoroughbred...

Aidan Butler, COO of 1/ST RACING, released a public letter to owners, trainers, and any other connections who use any 1/ST facilities, including Santa Anita and Gulfstream Park, warning of a zero-tolerance policy regarding shipping horses via cargo ships. Anyone who is associated with shipping a horse in this manner will not be welcome at any 1/ST racing or training locations, with an immediate removal of all of that person's horses from 1/ST venues. "In consultation with our Chief Veterinary Officer, Dr. Dionne Benson," wrote Butler, "we have determined that...