PTHA

In response to winter weather cancellations earlier in December, Parx Racing, along with the PTHA and the Pennsylvania Horse Racing Commission, has added three Thursday race dates for January 2026, January 8, January 15, and January 22, the track announced Wednesday. "Winter racing always comes with challenges, and flexibility is critical," said David Osojnak, Parx Director of Racing. "Adding these January race days allows us to respond constructively to December's weather-related cancellations while continuing to support our program and  horsemen to deliver a consistent racing product. We try to help...

The Pennsylvania Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association (PTHA) will present the 2025 Owners and Trainers Appreciation Day on Monday, Aug. 18, 2025, at Parx Racing, the organization said via a Wednesday press release. The event features 12 races with purses totaling over $650,000, with a first post of 12:40 p.m. ET. A total of 163 horses were entered on the card, including 153 in the body of the races. This will be the first day back for live racing after the annual Parx summer break. That same day, horsemen will be treated...

In a joint statement from President Bob Hutt and Executive Director Jeff Matty of the Pennsylvania Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association (PTHA), the Bucks County litigation filed last fall by members of the board of directors was settled on terms that all parties believe to be in the best interest of the PTHA and its 2,500-plus membership, the organization said via a press release on Thursday. On Oct. 22 of last year, TDN's T.D. Thornton reported that seven of the 11 directors of the PTHA had filed a legal response that denied...

In the wake of Smarty Jones's first appearance on the Hall of Fame ballot, announced Thursday, the Pennsylania Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association, Bob Hutt, issued a statement indicating how meaningful the nomination was to the organizations around the state. Roy and Patricia Chapman's champion three-year-old of 2004 won his first eight races, including the Kentucky Derby and Preakness Stakes, before falling a length short in the Belmont Stakes, where a record 120,000 people turned out to see him bid for the Triple Crown. He was retired after that race. "On behalf...

Seven of the 11 directors of the Pennsylvania Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association (PTHA) filed a legal response Monday that denied sweeping allegations of corruption and cronyism that were made last month by the PTHA's current president and another board member. Facing a petition in the Court of Common Pleas of Bucks County, Pennsylvania, that seeks to use a state business corporations law to remove those seven directors from the PTHA board, the respondents stated in their Oct. 21 filing that the petition should be denied "because it is both legally and...

Edited Press Release Jeff Matty was only 13 when Smarty Jones captured the collective heart of the horse racing world by coming within a length of winning the Triple Crown in 2004. (Queue Tom Durkin: "And Birdstone wins the Belmont Stakes.") In his third year as executive director of the Pennsylvania Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association (PTHA), Matty came up with an idea to ensure that the legacy of the best Pennsylvania-bred ever would endure for generations to come. The result is "The Ride of a Lifetime--The Smarty Jones Story," a documentary...

A legal petition spearheaded by the current president of the Pennsylvania Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association (PTHA) has made sweeping allegations involving bad-faith cronyism, corruption investigation obstruction, and more than a million dollars of "illicit and disguised ghost consulting payments" and "lame duck" contract awards that were purportedly authorized by and at times reportedly made to the PTHA's past president and the organization's current executive director. The purpose of the Sept. 6 civil petition filed in the Court of Common Pleas of Bucks County, Pennsylvania, by PTHA president Bob Hutt and PTHA...

Members of the Pennsylvania Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association (PTHA) have selected horse owner and breeder Robert Hutt to serve as the new president of the organization. Bob Hutt is president and CEO of Uptowncharlybrown Stud, LLC, a Pennsylvania-based Thoroughbred breeder and management firm. Hutt has 37 years of experience as an owner and a breeder and is the lead sponsor of the PTHA's Turning for Home, the association's signature racehorse aftercare and placement program. "I am honored and thrilled to represent the horsemen at Parx," Hutt said. "As president of the...

The Pennsylvania Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association (PTHA), in collaboration with Parx Racing, has announced several purse increases starting in the November condition book, along with the addition of five new stakes races in late November, including three for Thanksgiving Eve, Nov. 23, and two on Tuesday, Nov. 29. "The increased purses and additional stakes races are the result of higher than forecast handle throughout the year, including the record-breaking handle for Pennsylvania Derby Day," said Jeff Matty, Executive Director of the PTHA. "Increasing these purses, especially our state-bred purses, will allow...

Michael P. Ballezzi, who retired last year after 25 years as executive director of the Pennsylvania Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association (PTHA), passed away Wednesday, Aug. 31. "We've lost not only a great horseman, but also a great friend and leader," said PTHA board of directors president Salvatore DeBunda. "Mike dedicated 25 years of his life to championing the well-being and care of equine athletes, as well as championing the interests of horsemen at Parx Racetrack and across Pennsylvania. When he retired, Mike left behind an incredible legacy at the PTHA." A...

The Pennsylvania Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association (PTHA), which represents the interests of horsemen at Parx Racing, has named Jeffrey A. Matty, Jr. as its new Executive Director effective Jan. 1, 2022. Matty has served as Racing Manager for Besecker Racing Stable, an Assistant Stakes Coordinator at Monmouth Park Racetrack, and a Racing Official with Parx Racing. Matty will fill a vacancy left by Michael P. Ballezzi, who announced his retirement earlier this month after 25 years of leadership. "We are thrilled to have Jeffrey Matty joining the PTHA as our new...

After 25 years on the job, Michael P. Ballezzi is calling it quits as the Executive Director of the Pennsylvania Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association.  Since taking the reins in 1996 as executive director, Ballezzi has been a champion of the sport, its horsemen, and equine athletes while spearheading programs which would ultimately become the model for industry-wide change in equine aftercare. His most successful efforts include establishing the Horsemen's Purchasing Association, providing bedding, feed, supplements, and equipment at discounted prices on the backstretch at Parx; developing Turning for Home in May...