2009 Breeders' Cup To Remain at Santa Anita

It's official! The 2009 Breeders' Cup World Thoroughbred Championships will remain at Santa Anita Park in Arcadia, Calif.

Breeders' Cup officials announced today that the championships will go on as planned Nov. 6 and 7 during the Oak Tree at Santa Anita meet, despite the track's owner, Magna Entertainment Corp. (MEC), filing for bankruptcy.

MEC filed for bankruptcy in March and is currently seeking approval from the bankruptcy court to auction off its properties, including Santa Anita. If issues surrounding the bankruptcy had not been resolved, the Breeders’ Cup would have been moved to Churchill Downs in Louisville, Ky., which is scheduled to host in 2010.

Breeders’ Cup President and CEO Greg Avioli made the following statement on today’s court ruling:

“At a hearing earlier today, the Delaware court overseeing the MEC bankruptcy fully affirmed Oak Tree Racing Association’s lease with Santa Anita through the end of 2009. As a result we can now officially confirm that this year’s Breeders’ Cup World Championships will be held at Oak Tree at Santa Anita Park on November 6 and 7 as originally planned. Together with our colleagues at Oak Tree and Santa Anita, we are very excited to showcase another outstanding Breeders’ Cup from Southern California to our fans and horsemen around the globe. We also want to take this opportunity to thank Bob Evans and the Churchill Downs organization for agreeing to serve as back-up host site for this year’s Championships, and we very much look forward to our return to Churchill Downs in 2010.”