TurfPublicists: NYRA ON-TRACK HANDLE, TELEPHONE, AND INTERNET SOAR ON DERBY DAY

Sunday, May 8, 2011

Contact: Dan Silver

NYRA ON-TRACK HANDLE, TELEPHONE, AND INTERNET SOAR ON DERBY DAY

ELMONT, N.Y. – NYRA’s attendance, on-track handle, and account wagering activity – including telephone and internet – rose dramatically on Kentucky Derby Day this year as compared to previous years.

A combined crowd of 14,501 (11,051 at Belmont Park and 3,007 at Aqueduct Racetrack) came out for Derby Day, a 49 percent increase from the 9,405 in attendance last year at Belmont. This year, for the first time, Aqueduct is open year-round, seven days a week for simulcasting.

NYRA simulcast wagering on Saturday totaled $4,465,743, an increase of 115 percent over last year’s total of $2,077,461. The simulcast total includes $840,483 wagered via the NYRA Rewards internet platform (up 224 percent from $259,047 last year) and $446,773 from NYRA Rewards telephone wagering (up 91 percent from $233,657 last year).

The amount of telephone calls that NYRA handled this year on Derby Day was 10,818, a 139 percent increase from the 4,522 calls that were handled last year.

NYRA wagering just on the card from Churchill Downs was $3,276,396, up 106 percent from $1,593,939 last year, with wagering on the Derby alone totaling $2,082,000 up 119 percent from $951,981 last year. Both numbers represent new records for NYRA wagering activity on the Churchill card and the Derby. Saturday’s crowd at Aqueduct bet a total of $1,093,060.

On-track betting on the Belmont card was also strong, with wagering totaling $1,918,899, up 24 percent from last year’s $1,550,856. Total on-track handle was $6,384,642, up 76 percent from $3,628,317 last year.

Saturday’s grand total handle, including all on-track wagering and bets made on Belmont races from around the country, was $17,431,795, up 3.5 percent from last year’s $16,837,069.

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