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A failed bond issue has clouded the 2010 edition of the race. From AP-
The British Formula One Grand Prix faced an uncertain future on Friday after the failure of a bond to cover the cost of redeveloping the Donington Park circuit.
“Donington Ventures Leisure Limited can confirm that a bond for 135 million pounds [$224.8 million] to cover the cost of the F1 redevelopment at Donington Park has been unsuccessful,” a statement said.
“Despite higher than expected levels of interest and very positive early indications, the bond — which was launched with Citi Group last week — has failed to secure enough subscription ahead of today’s deadline. Information regarding the circuit’s future plans is not yet available.”
Formula One head Bernie Ecclestone had given Donington, which has a 17-year contract to host the race from next year, until noon Monday to remedy a breach of contract after repeatedly extending deadlines.
Ecclestone has said that Silverstone, the circuit that put on the first championship race in 1950 but lost the contract after this year’s farewell, will be offered the chance to regain the Grand Prix.
If Donington isn’t available, I’m sure the race will be run at Silverstone instead. Bernie Ecclestone has made it known in the past that the British GP would continue at Silverstone if Donington didn’t get it’s act together.
Along with the Italian Grand Prix, the British GP is the longest continuously staged Formula One race.
Funding issues and a recent veto by Michigan’s governor could cause the lights to go out on November 5th. From Harnessracing.com-
The immediate future of racing in Michigan is in jeopardy for the second time this year as the racetracks prepare to cease operations as of Nov. 5 due to the lack of funding from the state, a situation made even more dire by Gov. Jennifer Granholm’s recent line item vetoing of virtually all of the monies directed toward horse racing.
The first time this year that funding issues came into play was in late July when state money ran out to operate the Office of Racing Commissioner, which resulted in the Michigan Harness Horsemen’s Association taking $75,000 out of its purse pool to provide funding so that Hazel Park could continue its live race meet.
This time, it appears that avenue is not likely, so unless some sort of legislative relief comes in the next week a total shutdown of the tracks could be imminent. Live racing is currently being held at Northville Downs, but with a state auditor necessary at all the tracks because of simulcasting, all sites would have to close because there would be no money to pay that person.
“This is political football being played with the budget,†said Hazel Park director of racing Ken Marshall, who said he is remaining optimistic that funding can be found to preclude any shutdown. “This is like being in the 15th round and if we’re going to down, at least we’re going to go down swinging. This battle is not over yet.â€
Governor Granholm when announcing her vetoes, she said- “I believe that horse racing programs should be self-supporting.” I think horse racing should be self-supporting also. The sad news right now is that public interest in any form of horse racing is dying off. Some people in the industry think casinos or other forms of gambling at racing establishments can save the sport. The truth is, even racetracks with slot machines and poker tables aren’t doing well enough to sustain horse racing at the same establishment. If horse racing in Michigan can’t survive without public dollars, the industry should move on to somewhere they can be profitable.
Jenson Button has also locked up the driver of the year title. From AP-
Jenson Button has clinched his first Formula One title after capitalizing on his rivals’ miscues to finish fifth in a Brazilian Grand Prix won by Mark Webber.
The fifth-place finish Sunday was good enough to give Button an insurmountable 17-point lead in the drivers’ standings ahead of the season-ending race in Abu Dhabi on Nov. 1.
His closest competition for the title, Brawn GP teammate Rubens Barrichello, started from pole but finished eighth after a puncture on his home track. Red Bull’s Sebastian Vettel was fourth
.
Red Bull’s Webber took his second F1 win ahead of Robert Kubica of BMW Sauber and defending champion Lewis Hamilton of McLaren at the 2.6-mile Interlagos track.
Button had only one Formula One triumph prior to this year. Who knows Webber could be the Jenson Button of 2010.
This year’s Formula One campaign saw more than its share of drama off the track. I will be surprised if the offseason is quiet one.
Anything it takes to make people come watch a horse race at the track approximately every twenty minutes. From Harnessracing.com-
Starting with the Friday evening, Oct. 16, program at 7:05 p.m., the Isle Pompano Park is offering free programs for its own live cards to all on-track patrons and horsepeople.
“We’ve studied it and just finalized our plan late in the noon hour on Wednesday to move forward with this initiative as quickly as possible,†says the Isle Pompano Park’s director of racing operations, John Yinger. “There is a cost to doing it but we feel it can only drive on-track attendance and handle in the the right direction. Already the feedback is overwhelmingly positive from horsepeople and the fans here on Wednesday night that we informally mentioned it to.â€
He adds the South Florida track is going into a hurry up offense to get the word out.
No mention of this in the local media but that isn’t surprising. Harness racing has never gotten the coverage the thoroughbreds do.
Pardon the pun, but I’m betting tip sheets won’t be free.
At the time of his retirement in 2005, Busse was the 39th in career victories for a driver. RIP.
Daryl Busse, 67, for many years a leading driver-trainer both nationally and in Illinois, died Thursday evening, Oct. 8, at home, following a lengthy illness. Funeral arrangements have not yet been announced.
Mr. Busse, a native of Wisconsin, entered the sport by working for his father, Don, and the pair are noted to have been the only father and son who have won North American dash titles as drivers, Daryl in 1975 and his father in 1963. The elder Busse died in 1970.
In his driving career, which ended in 2005, Mr. Busse won 5,651 races and drove the winners of $30,331,095.
Two horses at the racetrack have tested positive for Equine Strangles. From AP-
Fifty-four quarantined horses are being removed from the Hoosier Park racetrack in central Indiana after two others tested positive for a contagious infection.
Hoosier Park officials had placed the horses in quarantine Sept. 12 after one thoroughbred at the stable began exhibiting signs of equine strangles, a bacterial disease common in horses that can be life-threatening.
Racing manager Jeffrey Smith told The Herald Bulletin none of the quarantined horses are showing signs of the disease, but that test results would not be available until after the Anderson track’s thoroughbred season ends Oct. 24.
16 other barns, housing over 1,000 horses, were free of the disease.
Note- Hoosier Park is also a standardbred track.
Another news report says Hoosier Park is on the verge of bankruptcy.
An Indianapolis television station has reported that Hoosier Park Racing & Casino is in danger of bankruptcy.
Fox 59 reported early Thursday morning that large loans due in the next 90 days may force Hoosier Park owner Centaur to file for bankruptcy.
“They are in very deep trouble, financially, and they don’t have much equity in the business,†State Sen. Luke Kenley (R-Noblesville) told Fox 59, noting that Centaur CEO Rod Ratcliff has approached him saying Hoosier Park will fold unless the state can provide tax abatements. “They have two large bonds which are in jeopardy of not being paid.â€
Indiana Deputy Gaming Commissioner Jenny Reske said several Indiana casinos have undergone bankruptcy reorganization.
Pardon the pun, but I’d wager not all those casinos double as racetracks. This news is further proof that casinos aren’t a silver bullet for the financial woes of the North American Racing Industry.(It just isn’t tracks, but racing associations like here.) Few people, gamblers or non-gamblers, appear interested in the sport anymore. It’s sad, and I think horse racing in the United States will be close to extinction in as little as a decade or two.
It is his 3rd win of the 2009 season. From AP-
Red Bull’s Sebastian Vettel has won Formula One’s Japanese Grand Prix to revive his championship hopes.
Vettel finished ahead of Toyota’s Jarno Trulli and McLaren’s Lewis Hamilton in Sunday’s race at Suzuka.
Drivers’ championship leader Jenson Button of Brawn GP was eighth, a place below teammate Rubens Barrichello. Brawn GP needs just one point in the remaining two races to clinch the constructors’ championship.
In the drivers’ championship, Button’s lead over Barrichello was cut by one point to 14, with Vettel just two points further back.
The final two GP races of 2009 are Brazil in two weeks and Abu Dhabi on November 1st.
Like so many Formula One races, the order of finish was pretty much predetermined before hand. Pre-race penalties to Button and Barrichello dropped those drivers to well back on the grid and left them with little chance today.
The suspension was handed down in Indiana but Wrenn is presently driving in Kentucky. From Harnessracing.com-
Peter Wrenn, a winner of more than 8,000 races and current leading driver at Indiana Downs, has been handed a 30-day suspension by the Indiana Horse Racing Commission. Wrenn was notified of the suspension, which took effect beginning Monday, Sept. 28, over the weekend.
Wrenn said Tuesday morning that he has appealed the ruling and asked for a stay, but since Indiana regulations stipulate that a stay would not go into effect for five days, he has filed an injunction in court. Wrenn is scheduled to drive at The Red Mile Tuesday afternoon and is awaiting word as of 9 a.m. from his lawyer on the status. However, Wrenn was taken off all his mounts at The Red Mile on Tuesday.
“As of right now I’m suspended until the end of October,†said a disheartened Wrenn. “I really don’t understand what’s going on. It’s a pretty sad deal.â€
According to a notice posted in the Indiana Downs race office, Wrenn was suspended for driving the 12-1 outsider Magical Delight in an “unsatisfactory manner†in the eighth race Thursday, Aug. 6. Magical Delight finished fourth in the conditioned race, which carried a purse of $3,300. Wrenn’s suspension, which is for driving only, will conclude Oct. 27.
The suspension doesn’t happen at a good time for Wrenn. Lexington’s Grand circuit begins this week. I suspect racing officials knew that before handing down the suspension.
It is his second win of the 2009 Formula One season. From AP-
McLaren’s Lewis Hamilton has won the Singapore Grand Prix and Brawn GP’s Jenson Button has extended his Formula One championship lead by one point.
Hamilton started from the pole on Sunday and protected his lead to finish 9.6 seconds ahead of Timo Glock. The German equaled Toyota’s best Formula One result by finishing second.
Fernando Alonso gave scandal-hit Renault a lift by finishing third for the French team’s first podium finish of the season.
By cheating at last year’s Singapore GP, Renault has brought at least a temporary case of bad karma upon itself. If the racing team’s fortunes don’t improve, will we begin to hear talk of the Singapore curse?
It was on television too and I totally forgot about it. From Harnessracing.com-
Well Said won the 64th Little Brown Jug Thursday afternoon at the Delaware, Ohio, fairgrounds, winning the $650,000 renewal in straight heats under rainy conditions. Driven by Ron Pierce, Well Said won his elimination in 1:51.1 and then wrapped up the race in straight heats by capturing the second in 1:51.4, over a racetrack rated as “good,” the first Jug ever contested on a track not listed “fast.”
Pierce worked Well Said into a second-over trip, following the cover of Mr. Wiggles. If I Can Dream, driven by Tim Tetrick, had the lead at the :56.3 half and still had control at the 1:23.2 three quarters, but at that point Well Said was in hot pursuit. The two elim winners battled side by side through the final turn and through the stretch, with Well Said winning out by one length. Straight Shooting and Dave Palone took show honors.
*****
Owned by Jeff Snyder and Susan Grange’s Lothlorien, Well Said was bred by Fair Winds Farm and Steve Jones. A son of Western Hanover, he is trained by Steve Elliott, who won his first-ever Jug. With 10 wins in 12 starts, Well Said now has seasonal earnings of $1,929,014.
The Jug is one of the premier events in horse racing but it will barely cause a blip in the sports pages tomorrow. How sad. Why doesn’t harness racing get the coverage the thoroughbreds do from the media?
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