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Churchill Downs Sets Wagering Record

Total Churchill Downs wagering from all sources during the meet was $160,512,766, a record for a 24-day Fall Meet. That is an increase of 7.2 percent from the $149,719,697 wagered by all sources in the 1999 Fall Meet, the previous record for a 24-day fall session. The 2000 Fall Meet saw a 7.4-percent increase in total wagering from the same meet in 1998.

The increase in total wagering was fueled by strong gains in simulcast wagering on Churchill Downs races at satellite wagering centers throughout North America. The gains in off-track wagering more than offset declines in on-track wagering and attendance during the meet, which was plagued in its final weeks by rain and cold temperatures.

The Fall Meet was highlighted by an unprecedented fifth visit by the Breeders' Cup Championship, but attendance and wagering figures for Breeders' Cup Day are not included in the meet totals. For purposes of comparison, those Breeders' Cup figures have also been removed from wagering and attendance totals from 1998, when the Breeders' Cup was last held at Churchill Downs, and 1999, when the track offered an abbreviated racing card and simulcasts of the Breeders' Cup races from Gulfstream Park.

Betting on Churchill Downs races at racetracks and satellite wagering centers throughout North America rose to a 24-day Fall Meet record of $130,625,089. The new mark is 8.2 percent higher than the previous record of $120,753,742 established in 1999 and is an increase of 11.5 percent over simulcast wagering of $117,143,245 in the last Breeders' Cup meet in 1998.

The on-track results were mixed when compared with those earlier years. On-track wagering on the just completed Fall Meet totaled $29,887,676. That is an increase of 3.2 percent over the $28,965,955 wagered on-track in 1999 and a 7.5 percent decrease from the $32,298,701 wagered on-track during the 1998 Breeders' Cup Meet. The increase in this fall's on-track wagering over the 1999 meet can be attributed to brisk business on the Friday before Breeders' Cup. That Nov. 3 race card attracted 14,145 fans who wagered $3,595,098.

Wagering on wholecard simulcasting during the 2000 Fall Meet continued to be an area of significant growth in on-track wagering at Churchill Downs. Wholecard wagering during the meet totaled $5,756,997, an increase of 11.8 percent from the $5,147,907 wagered in 1999 and a 13.3 percent from the $5,082,972 wagered on wholecard simulcasts during the live meet in 1998.

Attendance at the 2000 Fall Meet totaled 180,259, which was a 6.6 percent decrease from the 192,989 recorded during the 24-day session of 1999. Attendance at the just completed meet reflected a decline of 10.8 percent from the 202,153 who attended the races during the 24-day Fall Meet of 1998.

``We're very pleased by the continued strong support for Churchill Downs racing by fans in Kentucky and throughout North America,'' said Alex Waldrop, Churchill Downs president. ``It was a great honor to host the Breeders' Cup Championship for a record fifth time and we look forward to its return. We did see declines in on-track wagering and attendance for the meet, but Churchill Downs is facing competition in our market that was not present the last time the Breeders' Cup came to visit in 1998 and we were a bit unlucky with our weather. Overall, we enjoyed a wonderful meet and a great year of spectacular racing and we look forward to more of the same in 2001.''

Jockey Pat Day, the all-time leading rider at Churchill Downs, earned his record 29th riding title -- and 16th Fall Meet crown -- by riding 39 winners. Day's stellar meet included a five-win day on Nov. 19.

There was a tie for leading trainer between Bernie Flint and Elliott Walden, each of whom saddled 10 winners. It was the third Churchill Downs training title for Flint and his second Fall meet crown. It was Walden's fourth Churchill Downs training title and his first in the Fall Meet.

The award honoring the Fall Meet's leading owner is shared by Kenneth and Sarah Ramsey, the McKee Stable of Ron McKee, and Jan, Mace and Samantha Siegel, each of whom had six victories. It was the second Churchill Downs title for the Ramseys, who were the leading owners in the 2000 Spring Meet and are the first owners since Raymond Cottrell, Sr. in 1994 to win both titles in the same year. McKee's title is his first at Churchill Downs. The title was the second for the Siegels, who also won the Spring Meet title in 1998.

Race purses for the Fall Meet averaged $400,312, an increase of 9.3 percent from the $366,354 average in fall of 1999 and 5.9 percent increase over average of $378,058 in 1998. Fields for races in the Fall Meet averaged 9.19 horses, a slight increase over the 1999 figure of 9.16 horses per race.

The fifth renewal of the Breeders' Cup Championship at Churchill Downs on Nov. 4 continued the strong relationship between Racing's Championship Day and the home of the Kentucky Derby. Total attendance for Breeders' Cup 2000 was 76,043 -- which included 4,862 fans at the Louisville Sports Spectrum. On- track wagering on the Breeders' Cup card (including Sports Spectrum) was $14,363,349 -- the second-highest total in the history of the event. Total wagering, including international wagering, was a North American record $108,603,041.

Along with the heroes of the Breeders' Cup Championship, there was an abundance of equine stars on display during the Churchill Downs Fall Meet. Overbrook Farm's Surfside scored one of the meet's most memorable victories when she defeated older males to win the 126th running of the historic Clark Handicap (GII).

Stonerside Stable's Chilukki broke a 31-year-old track record for a mile in winning the $250,000-added Churchill Downs Distaff (GII); Roger Devenport's Unbridled Elaine shaved nearly two seconds off the stakes record as she won the $100,000-added Pocahontas for 2-year-old fillies; and Bordelaise nipped Breeders' Cup Distaff (GI) winner Spain by a nose in the Falls City Handicap (GIII).

Trainer Elliott Walden unveiled a rising star in Thomas VanMeter's Brahms, a 3-year-old son of Danzig who defeated older rivals in the River City Handicap (GIII) on the grass. The Siegels' Miss Pickums won the Golden Rod (GII) for 2-year-old fillies and Mary and Gary West's Dollar Bill took the Brown & Williamson Kentucky Jockey Club (GII), the closing day co-features for juveniles.

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