Churchill Downs Partners with Ascot and Epsom to Create Global Horse Racing Opportunities
The iconic Churchill Downs, renowned for hosting the Kentucky Derby, has partnered with two of the United Kingdom’s most esteemed racing venues, Ascot and Epsom, to cultivate novel prospects for the sport. This collaboration will provide horses participating during Kentucky Derby week the opportunity to secure invitations and travel benefits for prestigious races such as the Epsom Derby and events during the Royal Ascot meet.
“This is a transformative development,” remarked Gary Palmisano Jr., Churchill Downs’ executive director of racing. “We witness some of the finest turf horses globally competing here during Derby week, and this alliance paves the way for their owners and trainers to partake in the allure of Kentucky while vying for victory in some of Europe’s most storied races.”
Two pivotal races during Kentucky Derby week will act as springboards to Royal Ascot in June. The victor of the Old Forester Turf Classic, a Grade 1 contest, will earn an automatic entry into either the Queen Anne Stakes or the Prince of Wales’s Stakes, both highly regarded Group 1 races. The winner of the Twin Spires Turf Sprint, a Grade 2 event, will receive an automatic berth into the King’s Stand Stakes, a Group 1 sprint competition.
Gifted three-year-old female horses who triumph in the American Turf Stakes (GII) and the Edgewood Stakes (GII) will be granted automatic berths into esteemed races overseas at Epsom Racecourse. These fillies, having demonstrated their prowess on Kentucky Derby Day and Kentucky Oaks Day accordingly, will obtain invitations and transportation assistance to vie in the celebrated Coronation Cup (GI) and the thrilling Oaks (GI) at Epsom.
Nick Smith, the Director of Racing and Public Relations at Keeneland, conveyed his zeal for this alliance, remarking, “We are delighted to partner with Churchill Downs and the Jockey Club in England to initiate this captivating new endeavor. In the previous year, we had the privilege of receiving the Churchill contingent at Royal Ascot, where we displayed the Kentucky Derby trophy as they readied for the 150th running of the most exceptional race on dirt.”
This joint effort signifies a substantial step toward the internationalization of horse racing, aspiring to construct a base for upcoming intercontinental competitions.