CA Crown Shows Promising Wagering, Attendance Increases

The inaugural California Crown event Sept. 28 appears to have been a success as Santa Anita Park hosted its second largest crowd of 2024 and saw increases in handle.

With 21,812 in attendance, the day came in second on the year behind the April 6 Santa Anita Derby (G1) card which had an attendance of 32,089. Those on track Saturday wagered $1,345,794.26. In total, $17,907,293 was wagered on the 10-race card.

Santa Anita Derby day handled $19,080,238 over 12 races, giving California Crown Day the edge in terms of average wagering per race with $1,790,729 compared to $1,590,020.

The card was anchored by three major stakes that received purse hikes this year. The California Crown (G1) jumped to $1 million after being run at $300,000 since 2014 when known as the Awesome Again Stakes. In addition, the John Henry Turf Championship (G2T) and Eddie D. Stakes (G2T) increased from $200,000 to $750,000. The purse hikes were financed by the track's parent company, 1/ST Racing.

In addition to thrilling racing action, California Crown day hosted multiple musical acts and food promotions. The promotional efforts by 1/ST seemed to draw a younger crowd to the event.

Compared to the same race day over the last two years, 2024 saw a 26% increase in handle and 80% increase in attendance from 2022 while increasing handle 39% and attendance 115% from 2023, based on numbers provided by Equibase charts.