Gabriel Brings Experience, Expertise to NYRA

For Frank Gabriel, a lifetime of work in the racing industry has allowed him to see the world from many different perspectives.

He spent 15 years overseas working for the Dubai Racing Club as a CEO and a director of racing from 2005 to 2020.

He also logged 16 years in the Chicago-area working at Arlington Park and put in two stints with the New York Racing Association. The list of racetracks where he has been employed also includes Timonium Race Track, Parx Racing (nee Keystone Racetrack),  Atlantic City Race Course, Meadowlands Racetrack, Garden State Park, Hialeah Park, and Gulfstream Park.

Now, after such a hefty body of work, Gabriel is back with NYRA at a time when his experience and expertise are sorely needed.

The veteran racing official rejoined NYRA in early February, beginning his third stint with the organization by replacing Martin Panza as its senior vice president of racing operations and taking the helm of the racing department at a pivotal time for New York racing. As the months pass in 2022, NYRA stands poised for a redevelopment phase in the next few years that will carry it into the latter half of the century with the emergence of a new state-of-the-art Belmont Park, the likely closing of Aqueduct Racetrack to consolidate racing, and a continued focus on maintaining Saratoga Race Course as a gem of the industry as just some of the key items.

"You have to prepare for the future. There's no good time for development when you have a year-round program but through the support of the horsemen and management you can get it done successfully," said Gabriel, who oversaw the construction of Meydan Racecourse while working for the DRC. "Our goal is to do it right because you only get one shot at it."

Yet as much as this might be a period of tremendous change, including the opening of the UBS Arena at Belmont Park, Gabriel and his staff are also tasked with conducting the everyday business of carding racing at the sport's biggest year-round operation.

"(NYRA CEO and president) Dave O'Rourke has created a great team of people that have some new ideas and are expanding the thoughts of how to bring NYRA into a new era with a fantastic board of directors with the new chairman, Marc Holliday," Gabriel said. "There are a lot of good things going forward. We are trying to take things to the next level. Even though it's a year-round operation it's difficult to change and move forward because of your everyday routines."

One part of the year ended April 24 when the curtain came down on NYRA's six-month stay at Aqueduct with some promising handle figures. The spring meet at the Big A finished with a handle of $115.7 million, boosted by four additional days than the 2021 meet, and the winter meet featured a 10.7% increase in daily average handle over the previous year.

"Frank's strategic acumen and depth of experience have proved beneficial in the short time he has been in his current role at NYRA," O'Rourke said. "The winter and spring meets at Aqueduct were successful in a variety of ways, and Frank and the racing office team deserve credit for maintaining a strong product throughout those months."

A more vibrant part of the year began April 28 with an eagerly awaited ritual of spring: opening day at Belmont Park where the bountiful and colorful floral displays serve as a harbinger of the high-quality racing in the months ahead.

"This time of year is always great," said Gabriel, who was NYRA's director of racing from 1998-99 and racing secretary for Belmont Park and Saratoga in 2014. "We have a fantastic program at NYRA. You have to respect it. When Belmont opens it brings the Triple Crown into play and the increase in turf racing brings new runners to the circuit. You look forward to all that as you build up toward Saratoga in the summer."

The 44-day meet, which reaches its crescendo June 11 with the Belmont Stakes Presented by NYRA Bets (G1) and seven other grade 1 stakes, will feature 59 stakes worth $16.95 million as well as a business philosophy with little change from the past regime.

"The programs that NYRA have developed over the last five or six years have been outstanding and they're successful and you never want to start tweaking things just because you're the new individual," Gabriel said. "Are there small tweaks you might do here or there? Sure. But you have to study everything and see how it plays out. We have some great programs as far as the big events are concerned."

The condition book for the meet has a similar look from a year ago, with one notable difference being the new Elmont Starter Handicap, a $60,000 seven-furlong test on Thursday for 3-year-olds and up who have started for $20,000 or less in 2021-22 and run in New York this year.

Otherwise, maiden special weight races will carry a purse of $90,000 and first-level allowance races will be worth $92,000, lucrative amounts that Gabriel hopes will spur more people into becoming owners.

"The challenge for us is finding new owners," he said. "That's the key part. They buy the horses, pay the bills, and we need to get more people involved. Partnerships might be the way so that we can limit the financial exposure and get them engaged in the sport."

Keith Doleshel, the racing secretary at Aqueduct and Saratoga, has taken over for Pat Pope as racing secretary at Belmont Park, giving the condition book what Gabriel views as a beneficial dose of continuity.

"Having Keith on board at Aqueduct and keeping him in that job for Belmont for the first time and then Saratoga you have continuity all the way through," Gabriel said. "That continuity is good so that you can go from meet to meet with a good flow."

The Belmont Park meet will also see the launch of the 2022 Turf Triple series for 3-year-olds with this year's edition introducing sponsorship by Caesars Sportsbook of the three open $1 million stakes. The first of them will be the July 9 Caesars Belmont Derby Invitational Stakes (G1T), a 1 1/4-mile turf stakes.

"(NYRA chief revenue officer and president of NYRA Bets) Tony Allevato's team has done a good job with the sponsorships. Having partners and sponsors are a key to your growth. They help financially and bring exposure," Gabriel said. 

Partnering with Caesars serves as a reminder of how sports betting has become a part of the wagering landscape in New York and that NYRA and the entire industry would be well-served to find ways to introduce racing to a new wave of gamblers.

"We have to make the conversion from sports betting to horse racing easy for these new gamblers," Gabriel said. "It's the wave of the future. Sports betting was limited to Las Vegas when I was starting in the business. Now young kids have gotten involved in fantasy sports and built their own teams and now they are carrying it over to sports betting. Maybe horse racing is something that they can become engaged with and win some money."

Gabriel also arrived at a time when NYRA has become involved in several disciplinary matters, including a hearing for Hall of Fame Bob Baffert which resulted in an April 27 recommendation of a two-year suspension for the Hall of Fame trainer at the three NYRA tracks.

NYRA is also seeking to bar trainer Marcus Vitali, who has a long list of drug violations, and last month Wayne Potts and Juan Vazquez were among six trainers who were denied stalls at the Aqueduct spring and Belmont spring/summer meets.

"Stall allocations are a way of evaluating the runners, the horses, the people and deciding whether or not you want them here," Gabriel said. "There are new protocols with (the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority) coming on board in July and every state has their policies. At NYRA we want to stay one step above the curve. That's the key. Nobody in the sport wants to have anything bad happen because it reflects badly on the entire industry. Even If someone thinks they are getting an edge for themselves, in the end it affects us of all. The problem is that the smallest percentage of people make the loudest noises."

Looking ahead to Saratoga, the major differences will be the previously announced opening of the one-mile Wilson Chute and a shuffling of some stakes to Friday and Sunday to create more interest for certain weekends.

But before then, Gabriel will have his hands full facing the challenges of navigating a Triple Crown finale and a busy stakes schedule while dealing with wide array of daily issues and trying to maintain viable field size at a meet that serves as a springboard to those beloved afternoons at the Spa.

"I'm not a person that puts myself on a pedestal, so I don't have personal goals. I just want to see NYRA be successful. The development at Belmont Park in the future is going to be a great thing. We will be creating courses and training facilities the way we want them and creating  a state-of-the-art facility in which everyone will be thrilled to have the final leg of the Triple Crown and hopefully the Breeders' Cup in the future," Gabriel said.