Breeders' Cup 2014

[Stickhorse]

Saw this reply in in Lousiville CJ from a gentleman named Walt Gekko:

For Churchill to host the BC in any of the next three years, they would have needed to ask the Future Farmers of America to move back their convention by one week. Obviously, with Breeders' Cup Ltd. choosing to go back to Santa Anita for 2014, the FFA refused to or could not move their event back a week (as I understand it, they already booked every hotel room in Louisville for 2013-'15 for that event). That left the Breeders' Cup with no choice because they really can't move the BC off their current spot due to the positioning of other events on the international Horse Racing calendar. Moving the BC back a week in this instance (which would be necessary for Churchill to host the BC would likely cost BC Ltd. several horses from the Arc de Triomphe Festival whose connections would simply then wait for the Japan Cup and supporting events at Tokyo Race Course at the end of November/beginning of December. BC Ltd. would need the Japan Racing Association to agree to move their events back for the BC to be able to move theirs back.

That was the problem here, and it left BC Ltd. with no choice because New York (Belmont or Monmouth Park) is not an option for the foreseeable future either due to the New York City Marathon being on the Sunday after the BC with that event taking up a much greater amount of hotel space just since Monmouth hosted the 2007 BC (this reared its ugly head last year when many people displaced by Sandy were then being kicked out of hotel rooms by those in town for the NYC Marathon before it was cancelled). A secondary problem is a scenario where the Yankees or Mets have home field for a World Series that goes the distance (Game 7 as currently structured is on the day before the Breeders' Cup). That problem would be even worse if multiple rainouts (as happened in 1962, '75 and 2008 and would have also happened last year if the Giants had not swept the Tigers as the remnants of Sandy would have caused three straight rainouts of Game 5 in Detroit) pushed Games 6 & 7 back a few days to where they were played on BC weekend. In any of those baseball scenarios, Major League Baseball would likely have priority on hotel space over those in town for both the BC and NYC marathon (as the visiting team along with media and fans would need that space), creating a nightmare in that scenario for both BC and NYC Marathon officials.

That's why Santa Anita landed the Breeders' Cup again.