To call the situation for the horse racing industry in New Mexico dire is an understatement. Thanks to the Covid-19 pandemic, live racing statewide shut down indefinitely, a move that will cost the state millions in revenue.
Moreover, the health of the horses may be in jeopardy as is the sport’s future, according to the Santa Fe New Mexican.
“I’ve lived through a lot of bad experiences at racetracks, but none will even come close to stinging the industry as Covid-19,” said Izzy Trejo, executive director of the New Mexico Racing Commission. “You can put that in bold letters, my friend.”
Trejo said horse racing’s economic impact on the state can be measured in the hundreds of millions. In 2016, he said, it generated just over $500 million for the state, making it the third-largest source of revenue behind only the oil and gas industry and the tourism and hospitality market.
“If there is a way to get the state’s third-largest economic engine back online, I say we explore it,” said Richard Erhard, executive director of the New Mexico Horsemen’s Association.
While extended race events were cancelled at SunRay Park, future dates for Ruidoso Downs, the Downs at Albuquerque and Zia Park in Hobbs remain on the books.
“In these turbulent times, people love to say the sky is falling. But I don’t believe we’re at that point yet,” Trejo said. “We may look a little different when this is all said and done.”
The industry relies on a pari-mutuel system which combines bets from racetracks and casinos, a system that produced $48 million in purse money for jockeys and owners and more than $250 million to the state from casinos.
The association has proposed a plan that calls for live racing, but no spectators.
“We have an entire industry here that is in real, imminent danger of collapse,” Erhard said.
Recovery isn’t that simple as running races, Trejo said.
“We could open horse racing up, but if the casinos don’t open we’re going to be in a pretty bad spot,” he said. “The marriage needs to stay intact. A divorce is deadly to horse racing because we’re not going to generate enough money to have substantial purse money if we depend merely on pari-mutuel handle that doesn’t involve casinos.”
Trejo said the most optimistic outlook is a restart by mid-May, the new deadline for the stay-at-home order. For now, the plan is to go ahead with the scheduled event at Ruidoso Downs on May 22.
