Hollywood Park cancels Thursday card
Hollywood Park was forced to cancel Thursday's live racing because there were not enough horses to fill the eight-race card. The racing office was working Tuesday to fill Friday afternoon's card -- the only afternoon Friday card of the spring-summer meet. Hollywood Park will be open Thursday for simulcast wagering.
This may not be the only time this happens this year. There is a severe horse shortage in California, and Golden Gate Fields was forced to cancel a card earlier this month when the Northern California track could not fill its races.
If only we can card mule races (j/k).
With horse inventory down 25% at Hollywood Park (compared to last year), more breeding operations moving out (or dissolving) out of California and some high-profile barns (Vlado Cerin and Paolo Lobo, to name 2) moving part of all of their operations out of the state, California racing is in serious trouble (and this not only affacts Hollywood Park - it will affect Del Mar as well).
Los Alamitos is also dealing with the effects of a horse shortage (they are carding anywhere from 2-to-4 TB races a night out in Orange County).
Patrick
Patrick,
As one owner so succinctly put it ... no owners = no horses = no racing