Bob Hutt

Seven of the 11 directors of the Pennsylvania Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association (PTHA) filed a legal response Monday that denied sweeping allegations of corruption and cronyism that were made last month by the PTHA's current president and another board member. Facing a petition in the Court of Common Pleas of Bucks County, Pennsylvania, that seeks to use a state business corporations law to remove those seven directors from the PTHA board, the respondents stated in their Oct. 21 filing that the petition should be denied "because it is both legally and...

Uptowncharlybrown Stud is relocating Pennsylvania's leading active sire Uptowncharlybrown (Limehouse--La Iluminada, by Langfuhr) and GSP Eastwood (Speightstown--Fifth Avenue Ball, Deputy Minister) to Mountain Springs Farm in Palmyra, Pennsylvania, the stallion management company said in a release Wednesday. In 2023, the now-17-year-old Uptowncharlybrown set Pennsylvania's all-time record for combined stallion and breeder awards in a single season at $868,885. As for Eastwood, the current 14-year-old was the Keystone state's leading stallion in average earnings at $44,623; black type horses at 27.3%; and winners to starters at 82%. On Oct. 15 via...

After a horse named Causes Trouble (Creative Cause) broke down in the Aug. 24 Parx Dash at Parx Race Course and had to be euthanized, a video circulated that showed that the turf course was in abysmal condition. The video showed that there were numerous holes in the turf course and that the grass itself looked like something you might see in a vacant lot. Just without the broken bottles. There were as many weeds as there were blades of grass. "It's always been known as a bad course, but...

Officials at Parx Racing abruptly moved the GIII Turf Monster Stakes--one of five graded events on the GI Pennsylvania Derby and GI Cotillion Stakes undercard--to the main track after Freedom Eagle (Hoppertunity) suffered an unspecified injury and was vanned off the track following the running of the Alphabet Soup Handicap, an 8 1/2-furlong grass race restricted to Pennsylvania-breds earlier on the program. A statement from the track read: "Parx Racing management moved Saturday's Grade III Turf Monster Stakes from the turf course to the main track out of an abundance...

A legal petition spearheaded by the current president of the Pennsylvania Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association (PTHA) has made sweeping allegations involving bad-faith cronyism, corruption investigation obstruction, and more than a million dollars of "illicit and disguised ghost consulting payments" and "lame duck" contract awards that were purportedly authorized by and at times reportedly made to the PTHA's past president and the organization's current executive director. The purpose of the Sept. 6 civil petition filed in the Court of Common Pleas of Bucks County, Pennsylvania, by PTHA president Bob Hutt and PTHA...

Eight days after turf racing was halted at Parx amid pressure from horsemen and HISA, HISA officials released their evaluation of the turf surface, saying that the holes had been filled, but the surface was noticeably dry. Causes Trouble (Creative Cause) broke down on the grass in the Aug. 24 Parx Dash, leading his trainer, Harold Wyner, to walk the course and release a video that showed numerous holes, some of them up to a foot deep. Pennsylvania Thoroughbred Horsemen's President Bob Hutt said he was ignored when he demanded...

Pennsylvania's Parx Racing has issued a statement following news the turf course at the Bensalem track has been closed due to dangerous conditions. For background on the situation, which included the breakdown of Causes Trouble (Creative Cause) Aug. 24, please click here. HISA released a statement earlier Thursday indicating a series of tests will be run. Thursday afternoon, officials at Parx released their own statement. It appears in full and unedited below: "The recent spurious comments made by the President of the Pennsylvania Thoroughbred Horseman's Association, Bob Hutt, regarding the...

Under pressure from HISA and the local horsemen's group, Parx management has closed down its turf course after a horse broke down on the grass in the Aug. 24 Parx Dash S. The horse, Causes Trouble (Creative Cause), is co-owned by John Fanelli and was making his 33rd career start. "It's always been known as a bad course, but if I knew it was that bad, I never would have put my horse on that surface," Fanelli said. "I was really upset about the condition of the course and when...

Members of the Pennsylvania Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association (PTHA) have selected horse owner and breeder Robert Hutt to serve as the new president of the organization. Bob Hutt is president and CEO of Uptowncharlybrown Stud, LLC, a Pennsylvania-based Thoroughbred breeder and management firm. Hutt has 37 years of experience as an owner and a breeder and is the lead sponsor of the PTHA's Turning for Home, the association's signature racehorse aftercare and placement program. "I am honored and thrilled to represent the horsemen at Parx," Hutt said. "As president of the...

Edited press release Taking the next step in utilizing the state's lucrative Breeding Fund to enhance the breeding industry, the Pennsylvania Horse Breeders Association has established its first-ever 2-year-old PA-sired PA-bred stallion series, with $600,000 in stakes purses to be offered in 2022. The series will consist of two stakes races on each of two race days at Parx Racing. One race each day will be open to all 2-year-olds and the other for 2-year-old fillies. In January, the PHBA Board asked the stallion principals for suggestions on how to...

Pennsylvania's Governor Wolf hosts a radio show in which he answers questions from his constituency. I sent the following question, which he failed to address. "Dear Governor Wolf, Have you thought about the potential ramifications of your proposal to raid the protected horse racing and breeding fund that you signed into law back in 2017? If so, how do you explain the loss of 20,000 jobs and an industry that has a $1.6-billion economic impact and contributes $68 million in taxes annually? Thank You." I would like everyone who loves...

Dear Editor: Thank you for your article keeping the pressure up on Governor Wolf, as his timing could not be any worse. Who is going to breed to Pennsylvania stallions this season with this sword hanging over our heads? You would think as governor he would have at least taken into consideration that breeding season is only from February 15 to May 31. By acting irresponsibly, Governor Wolf has absolutely destroyed the 2020 Pennsylvania breeding season, regardless of whether his proposal is defeated, which it most certainly should be. I...