Turf Paradise

The 2024-2025 race meeting at Turf Paradise in Phoenix, Arizona, concluded on Kentucky Derby day May 3 with the lowest ever fatality rate in the 69-year history of the track, according to a release. For the entire meet, the track recorded a fatality rate of 0.73 per 1,000 starts and from the beginning of 2025 through the end of the meet, post a rate of just 0.24. The 2024 Jockey Club national average was 1.11/1,000, while the 2024 HISA national average was 0.90/1,000, the release stated. "Such accomplishments come about...

The two racetrack jobs that Crystal Conning currently has can be broken down simply. In one, her goal is to pick winners. In the other, it's to ride them. On Monday, her professional worlds will collide when the Monmouth Park paddock analyst rides Like a Saltshaker (Peace and Justice) in the second race at the Jersey Shore track in between TV appearances. "I think it's going to be cool to ride a race at Monmouth Park," said Conning, who hails from Melbourne, Australia. "I've been here three summers working and...

Trainer Marcus Vitali, who has not started a horse at a NYRA track since 2021, will make his  return to the Big Apple Friday when he sends out Classy Lass (Classic Empire) in Friday's fifth race at the Belmont At The Big A meet. The race is a $17,500 claimer on the dirt. The Daily Racing Form's David Grening was first with the story. Vitali, who has numerous violations on his record, reached an accord with NYRA July 1, 2022 in which he agreed to a suspension. But NYRA was...

Take Charge Tom (Tom's d'Etat) rolled by 9 1/4 lengths in his unveiling in a $30,000 maiden claimer over course and near distance Dec. 4 and jumped into stakes company Friday. The 4-5 favorite had plenty of company up front, dueling with Roman Gratis (Stanford) and Manzoni (Lotsa Mischief) early and having to put away a determined Candy Caballo around the far turn. Narrowly ahead of that rival into the stretch, he just edged away in the late stages to win ahead of a closing Don't Fly Stand By (Upstart)....

After a nine-day delay to fix safety concerns that pushed back the opening of the 2024-25 racing season at Turf Paradise from Nov. 2 to Nov. 11, horsemen, jockeys, regulators and track management were all largely in concurrence Friday that the first four days of racing at the Arizona track this past Monday through Thursday were conducted in safe and sustainable fashion. The largely positive reviews and glowing articulations of cooperation at the Nov. 15 Arizona Racing Commission (AZRC) meeting stood out in contrast to the contention and infighting that...

Following an inspection of the track surfaces by officials from the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority (HISA), the Arizona Horse Racing Commission has notified Turf Paradise that the 2024-2025 live meeting can begin Monday, Nov. 11. Turf Paradise General Manager Vince Francia said, "Thanks to our horsemen and the AzHBPA for helping us establish the new season. Our track maintenance crews did stellar work. We are excited to bring our fans another great season of racing." The racing calendar will run through May 3. This year's schedule includes live racing...

The racing season at Turf Paradise in Phoenix, AZ, which was supposed to open Saturday, Nov. 2 before an 11th-hour intervention from HISA, is now set to begin next Monday, Nov. 11, according to a joint release sent out late Sunday evening from the track and the Arizona Horsemen's Benevolent and Protective Association (HBPA). On Thursday, Oct. 31, HISA issued a press release, expressing concerns over the condition of the racetrack surface. Track officials postponed the start of the season, and an inspection team from HISA was expected to be...

On the eve of the start of the 2024-25 racing season at Turf Paradise, track management announced late on Friday that Saturday's opening day card has been called off. "In order to address some final track maintenance issues, there will be no live racing at Turf Paradise on Saturday," the track's social media feed on X stated late in the day Nov. 1. The news comes on the heels of a Thursday recommendation by the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority (HISA) that the Arizona track-which has a well-documented recent history...

The Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority has recommended a delay to the start of the racing season at Turf Paradise due to concerns about the safety of the track surface. A HISA statement released Thursday evening read, "Based on recent reports and assessments from racetrack surface experts, concerns raised by on-site racing participants, and first-hand observations of HISA staff, HISA is not confident that the main track racing surface at Turf Paradise is ready for racing to begin as currently scheduled this Saturday. Therefore, out of concerns for the safety...

On Nov. 9 last year, veteran trainer Steve Klesaris shipped his mare She's Awesome from Delaware Park to Aqueduct to compete in the second race. When she arrived, the receiving barns were full, and so, She's Awesome (Flatter) was sent instead to the track's auxiliary stabling, used as an overflow. The auxiliary barn is adjacent to staff bathrooms, with a lot of foot traffic through it, said Klesaris. It's also used to stable ponies, he added. She's Awesome won that day. But a post-race test came up positive for the...

A director of an independent accounting firm hired by the Arizona Racing Commission (AZRC) to audit the financials of Turf Paradise as part of the track's three-year permit application testified at a Thursday meeting that if $24 million in federal and state subsidies from the COVID-19 pandemic gets backed out of the equation, Turf Paradise has operated at a net loss for the past three years. Sean Tanner, a certified public accountant who specializes in forensic accounting with Keegan Linscott & Associates, further told the AZRC that based upon projections...

The National Thoroughbred League (NTL) added several key investors to join their roster of team owners, including NBA legend Julius Erving (Philadelphia Stallions) and country music's Tanya Tucker (Nashville Dreams), as the league expands from six franchises to ten ahead of its second season, the operation said in a release on Thursday. This time around the league will boast almost $3 million in prize purses, up from less than $1 million last year. Erving and Tucker join NTL's list of partners, including Nelly, Rick Ross, Kayvon Thibodeaux and Moira Forbes,...