The Downs at Albuquerque's Meet Plans
Description:
A stakes schedule worth $1.155 million will be offered to horsemen during The Downs at Albuquerque Racetrack and Casino's 39-day spring meet that begins Friday, April 17.
The 13-race Thoroughbred stakes schedule at the New Mexico track is topped by the 1 1/8-mile, $150,000 Downs at Albuquerque Handicap. The meet's richest race for any breed will be run June 13. Last year's Downs at Albuquerque Handicap, worth $100,000, was won by Isn't He Clever, a now 6-year-old gelding racing for J. Kirk and Judy Robison of El Paso, Tex.
The Downs also has carded five Quarter Horse stakes.
Lineage Weekend, one of the premier events in New Mexico racing, will take place May 9-10 and will offer eight $60,000-guaranteed stakes races for New Mexico-breds—five for Thoroughbreds May 9 and three for Quarter Horses May 10.
Downs director of race operations Don Cook and racing secretary Jim Collins received stall applications from 205 different trainers and the track's 1,440-stall stable area is at capacity.
"We have trainers coming from all over the country, including California, Florida, Louisiana, and Illinois," Cook said. "This meet has the potential to be our best ever."
Some of the trainers with stalls at The Downs include Justin Evans, Henry Dominguez, Joel Marr, Todd Fincher, Fred Danley, Bart Hone, Victor Escobar, Wes Giles, Lonnie Vaughn, and Eric Mikkelson. Bennie L. "Chip" Woolley, the trainer of 2009 Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands (gr. I) winner Mine That Bird, will have a 19-horse barn at The Downs.
Many of the top jockeys at the Sunland Park meet, which ends April 13, are expected to ride at The Downs, including Ry Eikleberry, Alfredo Juarez Jr., Enrique Gomez, and Esgar Ramirez.
"We had 47 full 12-horse fields last year; in years past it wasn't uncommon for us to only have two or three full fields during a meet," Cook said. "Large fields are what bettors like. Our statistics have shown that wagering handle increases exponentially the more horses there are in a race, and we're fortunate because the trainers who race here run their horses on a regular basis."
The Downs will offer live racing on a schedule of Wednesday, and Friday through Sunday, through closing day, June 18. First post time will be 1:30 p.m. (MDT) for weekend racing and 2:30 for weekday racing.
The Downs at Albuquerque Racetrack and Casino is located in the heart of Albuquerque at Expo New Mexico. For more information, visit www.abqdowns.com and click on the "Racetrack" link at the top of the homepage.