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Lawson unsure if Woodbine thoroughbred racing season will start on time

News and Results > Top Racing Headlines > 2020 > Lawson unsure if Woodbine thoroughbred racing season will start on time

Lawson unsure if Woodbine thoroughbred racing season will start on time

March 19, 2020
Lawson unsure if Woodbine thoroughbred racing season will start on time
Story by Dan Ralph / The Canadian Press

Jim Lawson can’t say with certainty Woodbine Racetrack’s thoroughbred season will begin on time.
 
It’s tentatively scheduled to open April 18, but the COVID-19 pandemic has made that a very soft start date. And while Woodbine officials are busy creating potential contingency plans, the uncertainty surrounding the virus is wreaking havoc with that process.
 
“Yeah, completely,” said Lawson, Woodbine Entertainment’s chief operating officer. “Assuming there’s a delay, and I won’t be surprised if we do have a delay in the season, is it for one month, two months, three months?
 
“Is the season going to be cancelled? We just don’t know and it makes it very hard to plan. Our priority is to look after the horses, ensure they’re being cared for and exercised. That’s not all with just a view to start the season, it’s trying to look after the horses and that’s what people want to do.”
 
Some American tracks have closed while others have opted to hold races without spectators. On Saturday, the $1-million (U.S.) Grade 2 Louisiana Derby will go before an empty grandstand in New Orleans. Mark Casse, Canada’s top trainer an unprecedented 11 times, will saddle two horses in that race, including 7/2 early favourite Enforceable.
 
On Tuesday, the Kentucky Derby — the opening race of the American Triple Crown — was rescheduled from May 2 to Sept. 5. If Woodbine must begin its season late, that will impact its top event, the $1-million Queen’s Plate.
 
The first leg of Canada’s Triple Crown is scheduled for June 27. But the uncertainty created by the novel coronavirus has forced Woodbine officials to refrain from taking financial commitments for its marquee race.
 
A later start would also have a trickle-down affect for the other two Triple Crown races — the $400,000 Prince of Wales Stakes (July 21 at Fort Erie) and $400,000 Breeders Stakes (Aug. 15 at Woodbine). It would also dramatically impact the Ricoh Woodbine Mile (Sept. 19) and Pattison Canadian International (Oct. 18), two $1-million turf races.
 
“We’re now working on what I’ll call Plan B in terms of a stakes schedule,” Lawson said. “We’ll keep the proportionate number of stake races, we won’t just eliminate those at the beginning of the season.
 
“But we also won’t run over 100 stakes races in a season that’s, say, been shortened by three months. That’s just to get us thinking and working on what (a revised schedule) might look like in terms of dates.”
 
Lawson said NBC is scheduled to broadcast the Woodbine Mile, but that was before the Kentucky Derby was switched to September. A late start at the Toronto oval could further complicate matters.
 
Lawson hopes to know in roughly 10 days whether Woodbine’s thoroughbred season will start on time. But that decision will come with a catch.
 
“It would always come with the caveat that circumstances are changing so quickly and day by day,” he said. “It’s all subject to change due to circumstances.”
 

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