http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qIgG3SnfwQo&feature=channel&list=UL
I just so happened to stumble on this video on YouTube and I must say I’m shocked and a bit horrified. Wtf? Is the Jockey Club really this messed up? Does bent racing occur in the U.S. as well? Have things changed in the Jockey Club since this was filmed to prevent bent racing? I’m a huge racing fan and I never believed such a thing could happen in our sport, now this video has me thinking otherwise 
Interesting. Here is more about that investigation:
[QUOTE=Devon’sGirl26;6526823]
Does bent racing occur in the U.S. as well?[/QUOTE]
To be more clear - ‘bent’ being effectively “fixed” and the focus on the UK film and investigation being with jump racing. Does it occur in the US with National Steeplechase Racing - I’d say no for a few reasons. First the sport here is a fraction of the size of the sport across the pond. Far fewer races, fewer jocks, few horses, few owners, very small collection of trainers and most importantly only a handful of races are actually eligible for wagering.
Races held at tracks such as Saratoga and Belmont do have parimutuel wagering but that’s just a few races. Otherwise all the jump racing you see in South Carolina, North Carolina, Virginia, Georgia, and Florida isn’t something you can wager on. As such there is no real financial motivation behind the sport in the US. Yes there is purse money but it’s honestly small potatoes and with the sport being more club like than not it’s really a sport with about three dozen owners in totality, but only a dozen with consistent winners.
Are there likely some games that get played? e.g. prior to going to Saratoga and bigger pursed raced might a horse be ridden conservatively, to then being a longer price, etc. Maybe but thats a far cry from outright nefarious activity.
[QUOTE=Glimmerglass;6526988]
To be more clear - ‘bent’ being effectively “fixed” and the focus on the UK film and investigation being with jump racing. Does it occur in the US with National Steeplechase Racing - I’d say no for a few reasons. First the sport here is a fraction of the size of the sport across the pond. Far fewer races, fewer jocks, few horses, few owners, very small collection of trainers and most importantly only a handful of races are actually eligible for wagering.
Races held at tracks such as Saratoga and Belmont do have parimutuel wagering but that’s just a few races. Otherwise all the jump racing you see in South Carolina, North Carolina, Virginia, Georgia, and Florida isn’t something you can wager on. As such there is no real financial motivation behind the sport in the US. Yes there is purse money but it’s honestly small potatoes and with the sport being more club like than not it’s really a sport with about three dozen owners in totality, but only a dozen with consistent winners.
Are there likely some games that get played? e.g. prior to going to Saratoga and bigger pursed raced might a horse be ridden conservatively, to then being a longer price, etc. Maybe but thats a far cry from outright nefarious activity.[/QUOTE]
But if the Jockey Club is willing to let jump races be fixed, who’s to say they aren’t allowing flat races to be fixed as well? Just some food for thought.
[QUOTE=Devon’sGirl26;6527053]
But if the Jockey Club is willing to let jump races be fixed, who’s to say they aren’t allowing flat races to be fixed as well? Just some food for thought.[/QUOTE]
I cannot speak to the independent Jockey Club orgs overseas. In the US they aren’t allow anything to be fixed.
Additionally jump racing in the US is governed by the National Steeplechase Association (NSA) and while they work with the National Thoroughbred Racing Assoc. (NTRA) they are two very different bodies. The Jockey Club as per say in the US doesn’t run jump racing.
The American Jockey Club is a Registry, nothing more. It doesn’t control or oversee racing in any way.
The OP seems to be confused about the Jockey Club referred to in the video.
The Jockey Club in question is the original Jockey Club, founded in Newmarket in 1750. Up until 2006 they used to oversee all racing in Britain (not the UK as sometimes thought, as racing in N.Ire falls under the jurisdiction of the Turf Club). Since 2006 racing in Britain is now overseen by the British Horseracing Authority.
The Jockey Club the OP is probably thinking of is this Jockey Club, a North American organisation. They are the keepers of the American Studbook, i.e they register TB horses and are the North American “franchise”, if you will, for International Studbook Committee.
Contrary to what many people on this board seem to think, the JC (NA version) have no regulatory powers over racing. Those powers belong to various state racing commissions, which are governmental bodies.
Not to mention, what would be in it for the state racing association to allow race-fixing? I’m sure there’s some deliberate cheating, it happens in every single sport that exists, but what would they gain by regulatory-level race-fixing?
(Besides, if anyone did that, you’d think we’d have had some agreed-upon Triple Crown winner by now…)
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