Two spots in the $2 million (estimated) Daily Racing Form/NTRA National Handicapping Championship (NHC) will be up for grabs in the TwinSpires.com Claiming Crown handicapping contest. Additional details on this exciting contest will be announced soon.
After August 21, the cost to nominate a horse to the 2011 Claiming Crown will increase to $500, and the deadline to submit nominations at the $500 cost is Friday, October 21. Nominators must also identify the horse(s) they made eligible through any open nominations by Friday, October 21.
With an open ($250) nomination, the nominating owner or his authorized agent need not identify either a specific horse for nomination or the intended Claiming Crown race at the time of nomination. The nominating owner or his authorized agent must identify the nominated horse no later than 12:00 midnight EDT on Friday, October 21, 2011. Open nominations for which no horse has been identified by 12:00 midnight EDT on Friday, October 21, 2011 are invalid.
Supplemental nominations (five percent of the race’s purse) will be accepted through Friday, November 18, 2011.
The nomination schedule and forms for the 2011 running of the $500,000 Claiming Crown are available on the Claiming Crown website at www.claimingcrown.com.
The Claiming Crown is a partnership between the National Horsemen's Benevolent and Protective Association and the Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association. Patterned after the Breeders’ Cup, the Claiming Crown was designed to reward Thoroughbred racing’s “blue-collar” horses and offer races at varying distances on both dirt and turf. This will mark the first time Fair Grounds has hosted the event, which debuted at Canterbury Park in Shakopee, Minnesota in 1999. Canterbury has hosted 10 of the first 12 renewals of the event. The Claiming Crown was held at Philadelphia Park (now Parx Racing) in Bensalem, Pennsylvania in 2002 and at Ellis Park in Henderson, Kentucky in 2007. For more information about Claiming Crown please visit www.claimingcrown.com.
Fair Grounds Race Course & Slots, the nation’s third-oldest racetrack, has been in operation since 1872. Located in New Orleans, Fair Grounds is owned by Churchill Downs Incorporated (NASDAQ Global Select Market: CHDN); it also operates a slot-machine gaming facility and 10 off-track betting parlors throughout southeast Louisiana. The 84-day 140th Thoroughbred racing season, running November 24, 2011 to April 1, 2012, is highlighted by the 99th renewal of the Grade II, $1 million Louisiana Derby on closing day. Information about Fair Grounds can be found online at www.FairGroundsRaceCourse.com.
TOBA, based in Lexington, Kentucky, was formed in 1961 and is a national trade organization of Thoroughbred owners and breeders. TOBA's mission is to "improve the economics, integrity and pleasure of the sport on behalf of Thoroughbred owners and breeders." Projects managed by TOBA include the American Graded Stakes Committee, The Racing Game, Sales Integrity Program and Claiming Crown. TOBA is the owner of The Blood-Horse Inc., and is represented on the Board of Directors of the National Thoroughbred Racing Association as a founding member.
The National HBPA (www.nationalhbpa.com), based in Lexington, Kentucky, is the largest racing horsemen’s representative association in North America, with 30 affiliate organizations and over 30,000 member horsemen. Big Dee’s Tack & Vet Supplies, Equineline.com, and Horseman Labor Solutions are proud corporate partners of the National HBPA.
