Live horse racing returns to Churchill Downs this week: Your guide to the September Meet
Three months after a series of horse deaths that led to the suspension of racing at the track, Churchill Downs is set to host live racing again this week.
The 11th annual September Meet is scheduled to begin Thursday and run through Oct. 1. A total of 14 race dates are set for the meet, starting with Thursday’s eight-race card with a first post of 5 p.m.
The September Meet is planned to start two days after the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority issued its findings following an investigation of the 12 horse deaths that occurred during the Spring Meet at Churchill Downs.
The 197-page report found there was “not a clear pattern in medical histories or injury profiles across the fatalities that point to a single, causal explanation for the fatalities.”
As a result of the horse deaths, Churchill Downs announced June 2 it was suspending racing at the track and moved the remainder of its Spring Meet to Ellis Park in Henderson.
During a second-quarter earnings call July 27, Churchill Downs CEO Bill Carstanjen announced live racing would return to the track as scheduled in September, calling the deaths “a series of unfortunate circumstances” and saying a review “didn't find anything fundamentally wrong or different about our track from previous years.”
The September Meet will feature racing Thursday through Sunday this week and Wednesdays through Sundays the following two weeks. First posts are set for 5 p.m. on Thursdays and 12:45 p.m. on Wednesdays, Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays. The one exception is Sept. 23, when first post is set for 6 p.m. for the lone Downs After Dark event of the meet.
General admission is $10 ($20 for Downs After Dark on Sept. 23). Reserved box seats are $12 ($25 for Downs After Dark). Children 12 and under are admitted free when accompanied by an adult. Tickets can be purchased online at ChurchillDowns.com/Tickets or by calling 502-636-4400.
Here are three things to know about the September Meet:
Road to Kentucky Derby, Oaks begins
The first points races toward the 2024 Kentucky Derby and Kentucky Oaks are set for Saturday, with winners earning 10 qualifying points.
The $300,000, Grade 3 Iroquois for 2-year-olds is set for a mile. Risk It, a son of Gun Runner and trained by Steve Asmussen, is the likely favorite after dominating a 6-furlong maiden special weight Aug. 19 at Saratoga by 4 ½ lengths under jockey Tyler Gaffalione. Risk It drew the No. 8 post in a field of nine.
The $300,000, Grade 3 Pocahontas for 2-year-old fillies is set for a mile. Hot Beach, trained by Brian Lynch, enters off a victory in the Ellis Park Debutante on Aug. 13. She drew the No. 9 post in a field of nine.
Bango seeks 11th Churchill victory
Bango will look to tie a Churchill Downs record when he goes for his 11th victory at the track Saturday.
The 6-year-old Bango, trained by Greg Foley, is entered in the $300,000 Louisville Thoroughbred Society Stakes. It’s the fourth race on Saturday’s card, set for 2:13 p.m.
Bango, a son of Congrats, has won 13 of 32 career starts and is 10-2-2 in 19 starts at Churchill Downs.
Ready’s Rocket, who raced from 2005-12, holds the Churchill Downs record with 11 victories.
Special promotions set
The Downs After Dark event on Sept. 23 will have a “Bourbon and Boots” theme inspired by Nashville, Tennessee. Fans are encouraged to wear cowboy hats and boots.
Highlights will include Nashville-inspired murals, live art, a mechanical bull, a Tootsie’s-inspired photo booth and live music from DJ Stingy and the Tim Cote Band with special guest Lana Scott.
Family Adventure Day is set for Oct. 1. Highlights will include face painting, inflatables, a bubble station, music, an arts-and-craft station and a Kona Ice truck.
Jason Frakes: 502-582-4046; jfrakes@courier-journal.com; Twitter: @KentuckyDerbyCJ.
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This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: Churchill Downs September Meet returns: Dates, info on races and more
