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Gulfstream Park / Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance

Aidan Butler, president of racetrack owner 1/ST, appeared on the Nick Luck Daily podcast on Wednesday and addressed, among other things, the recent controversy over Gulfstream Park.

He appeared on the program after word came last week that the Stronach Group, owner of 1/ST, said it would guarantee at least three more years of racing at the south Florida track if it won approval to decouple its Thoroughbred and casino licenses. If not, an executive said, the track could be closed sooner.

Butler said the statement, made by Stronach advisor Keith Brackpool in a meeting with horsemen at Gulfstream, was misconstrued by the media and others.

The idea that the track would close at the end of 2028 has “never been said. Hasn’t been echoed, internally or externally,” Butler said.

Rather, he said, the remarks were “a way to kind of give assurance to the breeders, in fact, because it wasn’t part of the original agreement that we had with the horsemen.”

The Florida Thoroughbred Horsemen’s Association agreed to support 1/ST’s effort to seek approval for decoupling in the state legislature.

Butler said 1/ST must consider a range of factors when determining the future of its properties.

“As much as we are a racing and gaming company, we have to consider every aspect of what we do,” he said. “The (Stronach) family has to look at how does the property perform as a whole. So the truth of the matter is, no one ever from our side pointed to we’re going to close. But more importantly, the statement was made that if we’re even going to have a conversation about that, we’re all going to work together to see where the future should be and could be, and just FYI, there are a lot of options of other places to be able to do racing.”

Butler noted that Gulfstream Park and another 1/ST track, Santa Anita, “are both in hot, densely populated, hugely valuable areas. There are other tracks in certain areas like that, but most of them have a different structure. Del Mar is stunning, state owned. Keeneland is under a structure that’s protected. A lot of the other tracks are maybe not in the nicest of areas. So if you could take your time now, wouldn’t it be wise, while we’ve got time, when we go into all of our machinations, to start to be thoughtful not only for ourselves, but be thoughtful for the sport of horse racing in Florida, and say, ‘Where would this stand the best chance of longevity?’ And I think that’s really what you get into.”

As an example of how stakeholders can work together for solutions, Butler cited Maryland, where 1/ST turned over Pimlico to the state. While it is being renovated, 1/ST will operate racing at Laurel Park and sell it when Pimlico reopens.

“We’re open to always having conversations with all interested parties,” he said. “Our intent and the best thing for us is, if horse racing can and will continue, then we’d love it to continue.”