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So what they are basically saying is that if the casino doesn't happen they will pull up stakes. I thought the sportsbook money a % was supposed to go to the purses.
What Settlemoir forgets to mention is that the Friday card is unwatchable and unbettable. Numbers don't lie. The betting customer doesn't like the product. They are betting less and less. The top drivers can't drive in the Amateur races. There were 3 races last night. Then throw in the 74.5 and under Tm races with very low class horses and small purses. (That's 5 more races). Between these 2 conditions. That's over half the card. Then you have leading trainers saying that thier horses don't get into the Meadowlands because the class does not fill and they have to race elsewhere. And the leading drivers follow the leading trainers. Many have firm commitments to drive the trainer's stable. And the night's purses are low. Very low. These top drivers are the best in the game. They are in high demand. There are many bigger races elsewhere with far greater purses. And they will drive where they can make the most money and where the top trainers need them. Should be interesting to see how this plays out.
It's not always that the drivers are not there, it's that they're often there, and want to cherry pick the races they drive in, telling the judges not to list them in lower classes or late races. How many times in the seventies do you think a trainer was told to choose between Russel Rash, Frank Tagariello, and Gerald Procino, because Carmine, Herve, Lucien, Buddy and Benny were there, but didn't want to drive in a B-3 or the last race,,, That's standard operating procedure now at M1.
Are any drivers who are there today in the same league as Carmine, Herve, Lucien, Buddy, and Benny?
This Friday has three races for 20K and one for 27K. That should be enough to attract some better drivers.
