"Reading the list of players, they're all dedicated to the industry. When people like that believe in it, I definitely think we're going in the right direction."
On the heels of this week's reveal of the nine slot owners for the 2020 Mohawk Million, some of the slot owners have offered comments on the concept. And while it's clear there will be no friends on the racetrack come September 26, Milton's Brad Grant is pleased to see the support the endeavour has received.
"First off, I think it's a great event," Grant told CP's Dan Ralph. "I think it's good for our industry, it's different.
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"I'm a big supporter of Woodbine Mohawk Park being here (in Campbellville, Ont.), being local, and everything they're trying to do to make the racing industry better and more entertaining. The prestige of racing in that kind of event and having a chance to win is exciting. I need a big win at home, I haven't had enough."
Grant joined Courant Inc.'s Anders Ström, Determination's Serge Godin, Diamond Creek Racing's Adam Bowden, Dreamland Farms' Gina Ghent, Fashion Farms' Jules Siegel, Jeffrey Snyder, John Fielding and Glengate Farms' Jim Bullock in purchasing a slot in the Mohawk Million at the price tag of $110,000 (USD). With a purse of $1 million (USD), the race will become harness racing’s richest race for two-year-olds.
The owners of the slots are not required to declare a two-year-old trotter for the race until entry time (September 22, 2020) and the slot is an entity that may be sold, traded or subject to lease. That flexibility appealed to Bullock.
"I probably have pieces of about 10 two-year-old trotters in training... I bought the slot in the race hoping when we get to September we have one good enough," said Bullock. "My backup plan would be if I don't have a horse that I think is competitive I'm sure there's going to be somebody out there that to his/her surprise has developed the star of the season and may not be eligible and be looking for a slot."
Bullock also likes the idea of the event being an open race, meaning a filly or a colt can enter. And as is the case with two-year-old trotters, fillies are competitive speed-wise with colts at that time of year.
"The other thing the race does is give you the flexibility to run a filly in there," stated Bullock. "Often with two-year-olds, the fillies are faster than the colts."
I hate to be the one to say
I hate to be the one to say it but personally I think this whole thing was a terrible idea.
Racing has gone out of its way to bring in new people to the sport. People who might like it enough to participate. The sport desperately needs new owners. It was for this very reason that Anthony McDonald started his concept of The Stable, was it not? The whole idea seemed to be that they would try to bring in new owners by showing them that racing could be fun and affordable.
This idea flies directly in the face of that. It basically screams that racing is for the rich. How else can you describe an event that requires you to put up $100,000 well in advance of any race without even knowing if you will have a horse that can participate? What happens if I, as a small time owner, somehow get lucky and end up with a horse good enough to participate or even be the favorite in the race, but I can't compete because my horse developed late and I didn't have the $110k to "buy" a spot. So now only the rich folks can buy their way into races.
This is doing exactly the opposite of what racing should be doing if you are looking to bring in new owners. As always, it's a rich man's game and by all accounts it will stay that way. Such a shame to see racing once again shoot itself in the foot with well intentioned but ill-conceived ideas. Just my two cents.