The two biggest racing days of the year at Keeneland will not go off according to plan, thanks to severe weather in the forecast.
Winds are howling across the Commonwealth ahead of a wave of storms that could dump as much as eight inches of rain on the ground between Wednesday night and Sunday. Horse racing is a stubborn sport that is willing to race in most conditions, but it’s still horse racing, not boat racing.
While Keeneland officials have yet to confirm a delay in the spring meet, the Kentucky Horsemen’s Benevolent and Protective Association (HBPA) has been informed that this weekend’s card has been delayed. Friday’s slate of races will move to Monday, with the Blue Grass Stakes card shuttled to Tuesday. Racing on Sunday is still up in the air.
Keeneland has yet to officially announce the decision, but other turf reporters have confirmed that horsemen have been notified of the delay.
(UPDATE: Keeneland has officially announced that races will be postponed.)
Delaying or postponing horse racing events is rare, even though Aqueduct recently canceled a day of racing due to loud noise from an auto show at a nearby casino. Races have not been canceled at Keeneland since 2015. To make a preemptive move ahead of this weekend’s slate is jarring to the sport.
Opening weekend is the most lucrative weekend of the year for Keeneland, and not just because of the massive crowds at the racetrack. Friday’s opening day card has three featured stakes races, including the Grade I Ashland, a premier Kentucky Oaks prep race. There are five stakes races on Saturday, culminating with the Toyota Blue Grass.
Saturday serves as the final tune-up for most Kentucky Derby horses. Even though horses can still earn points next weekend for entry into the starting gate, most trainers will not race their prized thoroughbreds within a month of the Kentucky Derby. This will throw off their highly specialized training schedules.
There’s one more thing to consider. Even though the Kentucky Derby and Oaks preps will steal the headlines, two Saturday races with combined purses of $900,000 are run on the turf. You can run on a sloppy dirt track. You can’t race on slick turf.
Keeneland has a Stacked Blue Grass Stakes Field
The weather delay will not only hurt Keeneland’s bottom line, it will also create an asterisk of sorts for what should be a spectacular race.
The morning line favorite, River Thames (ironic?) only has one career loss, a close second in the Fountain of Youth. Owen Almighty is coming off a victory in the Tampa Bay Derby, and Burnham Square scored a nice upset in the Holy Bull.
Two horses won big as 2-year-olds and are due to make strides forward in their second starts as three-year-olds. East Avenue won Keeneland’s biggest race for two-year-olds last fall. Chancer McPatrick had two Grade I wins last fall, before finishing second in the Tampa Bay Derby in its three-year-old debut.
Hopefully, the meteorologists’ worst fears do not come to fruition. Nevertheless, we’re going to have to wait a little longer to see world-class horse racing at Keeneland.
| Post | Horse | Trainer | Jockey | Morning- Line Odds |
| 1 | River Thames | Todd Pletcher | Irad Ortiz Jr. | 5-2 |
| 2 | Render Judgment | Kenny McPeek | Sheldon Russell | 20-1 |
| 3 | Burnham Square | Ian Wilkes | Brian Hernandez Jr. | 4-1 |
| 4 | Owen Almighty | Brian Lynch | Jose Ortiz | 3-1 |
| 5 | East Avenue | Brendan Walsh | Luan Machado | 3-1 |
| 6 | Chancer McPatrick | Chad Brown | Flavien Prat | 7-2 |
| 7 | Admiral Dennis | Brad Cox | Luis Saez | 20-1 |
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