NYRA Schedules 251 Race Days for 2015
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The New York Racing Association released its 2015 racing schedule Dec. 12, which calls for 251 days of live Thoroughbred action, headed by a 40-day summer meet at historic Saratoga Race Course.
The Saratoga meet is anchored by the Whitney (gr. I) Aug. 8 and the 146th edition of the Travers (gr. I) three weeks later. The stand begins July 24 and concludes on Labor Day, Sept. 7, with racing conducted six days a week, Wednesday through Monday.
Racing on the inner track at Aqueduct Racetrack, which began on Dec. 3, will continue through March 22, 2015. In an effort to keep field sizes at a maximum in advance of Aqueduct's spring meet, racing will be conducted four days a week for four weeks—the last week of February and the first three weeks of March.
There will be no live racing at Aqueduct from March 23-31.
"In light of the national foal crop reduction, our goal in creating a four-day race week during this period is to increase field size and provide additional rest for our equine athletes in advance of our Aqueduct spring meet," said Martin Panza, senior vice president of racing operations for NYRA. "In essence, the March break is allowing us to create a more vibrant spring meet at the Big A."
The 19-day spring meet will be conducted on Aqueduct's main track from April 1-26. It includes the first two grade I races of the year April 4: the $1 million Twinspires.com Wood Memorial and the $400,000 Carter Handicap.
The 59-day Belmont Park spring/summer meet begins April 29 and features the 147th running of the $1.5 million Belmont Stakes (gr. I) June 6. The highlight of the Belmont Stakes Racing Festival, Belmont Stakes Day itself will offer nine additional stakes, with five stakes scheduled June 5, and two more June 4. There will be no racing June 3.
The Belmont spring/summer meet also will feature the second "must-see" event of the year, the internationally themed "Stars & Stripes Festival" July 4, with six graded stakes worth $3.8 million. The spring/summer meet concludes July 19.
Later in the year, the Belmont fall meet will run 38 days from Sept. 11 through Nov. 1, with "Super Saturday" scheduled for Sept. 26.
The racing calendar wraps up with 40 days of live racing at Aqueduct commencing Nov. 4 and running through New Year's Eve. There will be a five-day winter break scheduled from Dec. 21 through Christmas Day, Dec. 25.
The stakes schedule for the Aqueduct spring meet, Belmont Park, and Saratoga will be announced in the coming days.