On Thursday, November 6, officials with Yonkers Raceway announced that the track is readying for the international intrigue that comes with the debut of Sunday simulcasting to France.
The first of Yonkers’ six Sunday matinee racing programs – which carry a first-race post time of 11 a.m. – will take place this weekend and will offer a number of handicapping variables.
The Sunday cards are going to be front-loaded with trotters, with the overseas audience wagering on the first five races. Those events are all added-distance (a mile and a quarter) with higher purses and oversized fields (12, 12, 10, 10 and 10 horses, respectively).
Included in that quintet is a 12-horse Open, which has been carded as the second dash on the 12-race program.
The half-dozen Sundays – which will run through December 14, inclusive – replace five Tuesday nights (November 11 through December 9).
The overseas pool cannot be co-mingled, so the French betting won’t be included at Yonkers. Toward that end, Yonkers is altering (at least for the first Sunday) the wagering format for some of the early Sunday races:
Race 1 – no triple
Race 2 – no triple, no Pick 3
Race 3 – no superfecta, no Pick 4
Race 4 – no Pick 3.
“We’re optimistic our Sundays are going to prove popular,” the track’s COO, Bob Galterio, said. “None of this works without the help of any number of groups, including our horsemen, the New York State Gaming Commission, the French PMU and simulcast partners who have accommodated our schedule change.”
(With files from Yonkers)