Laurel to Host Qualifiers for Claiming Crown

Blood-Horse

The Maryland Jockey Club Sept. 18 announced it will partner with Gulfstream Park and the Claiming Crown to hold nine “Win and You’re In” races Nov. 1 at Laurel Park.

The nine races will mirror the nine Claiming Crown races to be run Dec. 5 at Gulfstream on opening day of its 2015-2016 championship meet. Purses of the nine races at Laurel will be worth approximately 40% of the Claiming Crown races, with the winner of each gaining an automatic berth in the Claiming Crown and free shipping.

“We believe this is another way to draw attention to the outstanding event that is the Claiming Crown,” said Maryland Jockey Club president Sal Sinatra. “We want to work with our sister tracks and support each other and this is another way of doing that. This is a great avenue for smaller guys, who don’t have the money to ship, to earn a trip to the Claiming Crown if they have a legitimate horse. I think it will also get some of our fans in the Mid-Atlantic excited about another big day of racing at Laurel and then opening day at Gulfstream.

“Speaking from past experience, we partnered with the Claiming Crown when it was at Canterbury and had ‘Win and You’re In’ races at Philadelphia Park and they were well-received. We think this will be an exciting event for horsemen and bettors, and will attract large fields.”