Batavia Downs cancelled its live races on Saturday (Sept. 12) before they got underway due to unsafe track conditions.

Western New York was inundated with heavy rain all day and as a result, the track surface became very slippery despite efforts to grade it and clear the water.

The main concern was traction for the starting car. It was deemed that the car could not properly grab the track and accelerate away enough to break from the field to provide a fair and safe start. With both the horsemen and track management concerned, it was decided for the best interests of all involved that the card be cancelled.

Todd Haight, General Manager/Director of Live Racing, said, “Our main concern is always for the safety of our horses and horsemen and the track did not lend itself to providing that condition tonight. Once we determined we could not proceed in a manner that we felt comfortable with, we decided to cancel the races.”

Racing will resume at Batavia Downs on Tuesday (Sept. 15) with a special twilight post time of 4:30 p.m.

(Batavia Downs)