Edited NYRA Release – The New York Racing Association, Inc. (NYRA) today announced that the recently concluded Belmont Park spring/summer meet generated $13,437,509 in average daily handle.
With this year’s two percent increase over 2021, average daily handle at the Belmont Park spring/summer meet has risen 23.1 percent since 2019.
On-track handle for the 2022 spring/summer meet totaled $57,531,001, an increase of 16.6 percent over the 2021 figure of $49,343,664.
All-sources handle for the 44-day spring/summer meet totaled $591,250,409, which compares to $632,208,251 in 2021 when the meet was contested over 48 days.
The June 11 Belmont Stakes Day card, highlighted by Mo Donegal’s victory in the 154th running of the Grade 1, $1.5 million Belmont Stakes presented by NYRA Bets, generated all-sources handle of $98,766,906.
Average field size for the 419 races run during the 2022 spring/summer meet was 7.35, a 3.6 percent decline from the 2021 average of 7.62. The 2022 spring/summer meet saw 233 races on dirt and 186 on the turf. 26 races were forced off the turf due to weather.
Highlighted by the 153rd renewal of the Grade 1, $1.25 million Runhappy Travers on August 27 and the Grade 1, $1 million Whitney on August 6, the 2022 summer meet at historic Saratoga Race Course will open on Thursday, July 14, and continue through Monday, September 5.
Following the four-day opening weekend, racing will be conducted five days a week, Wednesdays through Sundays, apart from the final week, when the meet will conclude on Labor Day.
Saratoga Live will present daily coverage and analysis of the summer meet at on the networks of FOX Sports.
