News Releases

Thursday, August 08, 2013Contact: Bob Curran Jr. (212) 521-5326
FOX Sports Announces Multi-Year Partnership with The Jockey Club

FOX Sports 1 Features Top Thoroughbred Races in Newly Created Series

New Package Premieres Feb. 2014 from Gulfstream Park

New York – FOX Sports and The Jockey Club announced today a multi-year agreement to air prominent graded stakes races starting in 2014 from many of horse racing’s best known tracks on FOX Sports 1, America’s new sports network launching Saturday, Aug. 17.

The newly created package of nationally televised races consists of up to 10 telecasts per year. Each telecast includes two top stakes races featuring the leading horses in North America.

The agreement also includes international and Spanish-language rights, including the ability to air races on FOX Deportes, the nation’s leading Spanish-language sports network

The announcement was made by FOX Sports Executive Vice President of Production and Executive Producer John Entz and The Jockey Club Chairman Ogden Mills Phipps.

“We’re proud to partner with The Jockey Club and to place a bet on the future of Thoroughbred racing,” said Entz. “FOX Sports 1 is all about making sports more fun, and few events in sports are as much fun as a day at a great racetrack. Our partnership with The Jockey Club highlights the elements that make horse racing fun: the power and grace of the Thoroughbred, the challenging puzzle of handicapping, and the social aspect of a day at the races. We look forward to showcasing the highest level of competition in one of the most storied of all sports.”

“The Jockey Club is thrilled to be joining forces with FOX Sports to showcase many of this country’s most prestigious races before a national television audience,” said Phipps. “Increasing the national television presence of Thoroughbred racing continues to be a key component of our fan retention and development efforts under the America’s Best Racing banner, and it will be gratifying to see Thoroughbred racing alongside Major League Baseball, college basketball, college football, NASCAR, and UFC events on the new FOX Sports 1.”

The race series features graded stakes races from some of the most historic racetracks in North America, including Del Mar, Gulfstream Park, Keeneland, Santa Anita Park and Woodbine as well as the race tracks of the New York Racing Association.

The new series premieres on FOX Sports 1 on Sunday, February 9, 2014, from Gulfstream Park in Hallandale, Florida and features the Grade 1 Donn Handicap and the Grade 1 Gulfstream Park Turf Handicap. The complete 2014 schedule of races will be released at a later date.

The race series spotlights many horses that previously competed in Triple Crown races.

-- FOX SPORTS --

About The Jockey Club
The Jockey Club, founded in 1894 and dedicated to the improvement of Thoroughbred breeding and racing, is the breed registry for North American Thoroughbreds. In fulfillment of its mission, The Jockey Club, directly or through subsidiaries, provides support and leadership on a wide range of important industry initiatives, and it serves the information and technology needs of owners, breeders, media, fans and farms. It is a founding member of the National Thoroughbred Racing Association and the International Federation of Horseracing Authorities and the architect and sole funding source for America’s Best Racing, the broad-based fan development initiative for Thoroughbred racing. You can follow America’s Best Racing at followhorseracing.com as well as on social media platforms Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Google+, and Instagram.

About FOX Sports 1
FOX Sports 1 is a new national 24-hour multi-sport channel launching on August 17 and boasts nearly 5,000 hours of live event, news and original programming annually. The channel has seven pillar sports: college basketball and football, MLB (in 2014), NASCAR, NFL (ancillary programs), soccer and UFC. College football is highlighted by regular season coverage of Big 12, Pac-12 and Conference USA games, while the college basketball spotlight shines on the Big East, Big 12, Pac-12 and Conference USA and the Big East men’s basketball tournament. Starting in 2014, select MLB League Championship Series and Division Series games as well as regular season games are coming to the channel. FOX Sports 1 also carries select NASCAR Sprint Cup Series events beginning in 2015; NASCAR Camping World Truck Series races; the NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race; and all Speedweeks coverage, including Daytona 500 Qualifying, Sprint Unlimited at Daytona, (2014, 2017-22) the Budweiser Duel, and NASCAR Sprint Cup Series and NCWTS Practice and Qualifying sessions. Additionally, FOX Sports 1 carries NASCAR RACEDAY, NASCAR VICTORY LANE and RACE HUB shows. The channel also carries the world’s most prolific club soccer competitions, like UEFA Champions League, UEFA Europa League and CONCACAF Champions League, along with the world’s oldest soccer competition, the FA Cup; plus CONCACAF Gold Cup; CONCACAF Qualifiers, EURO 2016 Qualifiers; 2018 FIFA World Cup Qualifiers; FIFA Women’s World Cup in 2015 and 2019; FIFA Men’s World Cup in 2018 and 2022. In addition to Saturday pay-per-view preliminary cards, Wednesday nights are home to the UFC with UFC TONIGHT, live events and THE ULTIMATE FIGHTER. In Feb. 2014, FOX Sports 1 partners with The Jockey Club for newly created package of nationally televised races featuring the leading horses in the country. FOX SPORTS LIVE is FOX Sports 1’s flagship 24/7 news, opinion and highlights program, providing around the clock coverage through regularly scheduled programs, hourly updates and an information rich ticker. Original programs include: FOX FOOTBALL DAILY, CROWD GOES WILD, a new live sports entertainment talk show hosted by Regis Philbin; and the groundbreaking BEING: documentary franchise. FOX Sports GO, a groundbreaking authenticated mobile sports experience for iPhone, iPad, Android devices and the web, serves as the channel’s digital extension. The app offers more than 1,100 live games and events from cross FOX Sports, FOX Sports 1 and FOX Sports’ 22 regional sports networks, as well as scores, highlights, news, stats and analysis. For more information visit www.FOXSports.com/FOXSports1.