Jockeys at Woodbine Racetrack have recently worked Thoroughbreds for clockwise turf racing at the suburban Toronto raceway, and Woodbine Entertainment Group CEO Jim Lawson has confirmed that some pari-mutuel clockwise races will be contested during Thoroughbred cards at the track this year.

According to an article, Woodbine Racetrack will feature 25 turf races in which the runners will travel in the clockwise direction. The races will be the first of their kind in North America, even though they are common overseas.

Lawson has said that there are multiple reasons for why the clockwise races have been planned. He mentioned the fact that they are common in other areas of the world. Lawson also said that he hopes the clockwise races could attract some interest from customers. He also said that the 25 races would allow an under-utilized area of the turf track to be used.

"We need innovative ways to attract more fans, horses and horsepeople to Woodbine,” said Lawson.

He went on to states that, "At a practical level, it's using a part of the turf course we weren't using very much to hopefully create larger field sizes. In turn, there's no question larger field sizes mean more wagering so there's a whole business aspect to it."

Woodbine’s 2016 Thoroughbred meet will kick off this Saturday (April 9) and will run until December 4. The meet will feature 133 race dates, and the majority of the races will be contested over the new Tapeta surface on the main track. The Tapeta surface has replaced the former Polytrack. Woodbine had hosted nine meets of Thoroughbred racing over the Polytrack, which had replaced the traditional dirt surface.

(With files from CTV News)

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