CDI

The gaming corporation that controls the GI Kentucky Derby fired the latest legal salvo in trainer Bob Baffert's ongoing attempt to reverse the second year of a two-year ban the company imposed in 2021 because of a spate of drug positives in Grade I races, urging a federal judge not to grant an injunction that would lift the ban in time for the May 6 Derby. "Baffert refuses to accept responsibility for his wrongful actions..." Churchill Downs Inc. (CDI) wrote in a brief opposing Baffert's motion for a preliminary injunction...

The developer advising Chicago's mayor is proposing a $2.2-billion renovation proposal that includes a glass stadium dome to keep the city's National Football League team, the Bears, at its longtime downtown location, Soldier Field. The website Front Office Sports published details Jan. 8. The news is of peripheral interest to horse racing enthusiasts, because the Bears have otherwise entered into a purchase agreement to instead build a $5-billion stadium on the site of the former Arlington International Racecourse. Although the specifics of the proposal are new, city officials have been...

Three weeks after renewing his federal court fight to reverse a corporation's ban on being able to train horses in the GI Kentucky Derby and GI Kentucky Oaks, Bob Baffert on Wednesday let the judge in the case know that time is of the essence in scheduling his hearing on a preliminary injunction, because the races that award significant qualifying points for Derby and Oaks eligibility are quickly approaching. Baffert's legal team filed a Jan. 4 notice in United States District Court (Western District of Kentucky) explaining that the May...

Churchill Downs Inc. has requested permission from the American Graded Stakes Committee to move the GI Arlington Million S., the GI Beverly D. S. and the GI Secretariat S. to Colonial Downs. The three races were fixtures at Arlington Park before that track closed in 2021. Last year, the Million and the Beverly D. were run at Churchill Downs. The 2023 races are slated to be run on Aug. 12. In November, it was announced that Churchill had acquired the assets of Peninsula Pacific Entertainment LLC, the owners of Colonial...

With the approval of the Louisiana State Racing Commission, Fair Grounds is lowering the takeout on its Pick 5 from 25% to 15% and adding a new Pick 6 at the same 15% rate with a $1 minimum. "We are very excited about both of these new wagering opportunities for horseplayers," said Gary Palmisano Jr., the newly-appointed Executive Director of Racing for Churchill Downs Incorporated, which owns Fair Grounds. "Fair Grounds has not had a Pick 6 in many years. After monitoring the success of this same wager at the...

Five months after New Hampshire gambling regulators and the state's attorney general disclosed that they were investigating the TwinSpires advance deposit wagering (ADW) platform over concerns that the Churchill Downs, Inc. (CDI)-owned entity has operated for years without being explicitly licensed there, TwinSpires is ceasing operations in the Granite State. Back in April, Charlie McIntyre, the executive director of the New Hampshire Lottery, which regulates all forms of gambling in the state, told WMUR-TV that "They're not regulated by us, nor do they operate on any confines of state law.......

The pending sale of Ellis Park to the gaming company Churchill Downs, Inc. (CDI), cleared a necessary regulatory hurdle Tuesday when the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission (KHRC) swiftly approved the transaction by a unanimous voice vote. The KHRC members in attendance at the "special" meeting greenlighted the $79-million transaction in just 6 ½ minutes after a perfunctory read-through of the basic terms of the deal and a statement that the commission expects CDI to follow through with development projects that had been agreed to by the outgoing owner, which is...

Churchill Downs Incorporated announced that it has signed a definitive agreement to acquire Ellis Park Racing & Gaming in Henderson, Kentucky, from Enchantment Holdings, LLC, an affiliate of Laguna Development Corporation, for total consideration of $79 million in cash, subject to certain working capital and other purchase price adjustments. CDI will also assume Ellis Park's opportunity to construct a track extension facility in Owensboro, Kentucky. "This is an exciting announcement for the horse racing industry, the cities of Henderson and Owensboro, and the entire Commonwealth of Kentucky," said Kentucky Governor...

Gary Palmisano, Jr. has been promoted to Executive Director of Racing for Churchill Downs Incorporated, the company announced Monday. In this role, CDI says Palmisano will "support and enhance the Company's commitment to the U.S. Thoroughbred racing and breeding industry as well as focus on the implementation of standards and processes outlined in the Horse Racing Integrity and Safety Act" across CDI racing properties. "Gary brings a wealth of varied industry experience that ideally positions him for success in this role," said Bill Mudd, President and Chief Operating Officer at...

Just days after the one-year anniversary of Churchill Downs, Inc. (CDI)'s, ruling-off of trainer Bob Baffert over his repeated equine medication violations, the gaming corporation that controls the GI Kentucky Derby swatted back at the Hall of Fame trainer in federal court in an attempt to get a judge to dismiss a lawsuit initiated by Baffert that aims to reverse the two-year ban. "For the past eleven months, Bob Baffert has tried to dodge accountability for drugging Medina Spirit," CDI wrote in a reply brief filed June 6 in United...

On the same afternoon that Churchill Downs took entries for the GI Kentucky Derby that included two horses formerly trained by barred trainer Bob Baffert, the gaming corporation that controls the Derby asked a federal judge to dismiss a lawsuit Baffert had filed Feb. 28 attempt to get his private-property banishment by Churchill Downs, Inc. (CDI), overturned. Back on Apr. 11, the same federal judge in United States District Court (Western District of Kentucky) had permitted Baffert to withdraw his motion for a preliminary injunction to allow him to enter...

A $775,000 purse account dispute between the Illinois Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association (ITHA) and Arlington International Racecourse, LLC, that has simmered for over half a year got escalated to federal court Wednesday. The ITHA is alleging a purse account underpayment in 2021 from now-defunct Arlington and a breach of contract triggered by Arlington's refusal to hand over the money once it became known the property was scheduled to be sold and that no racing would occur there in 2022. Asked for comment via email late Wednesday afternoon, Arlington president Tony Petrillo...