One day after concluding its winter-spring season, Santa Anita Park Monday reported strong increases in wagering and attendance, while also touting a nation-leading safety record for horses racing and training at the Arcadia track.
“This year was a transitional one for the California racing community and it was a success by every measure,” Nate Newby, senior vice president and general manager of Santa Anita Park, said in a statement. “We are thankful for the continued support of the owners, trainers, jockeys, veterinarians, the horsemen and women who provide outstanding care for the horses; for the horseplayers who back our product; and for our staff for putting on a great show. Horses based at Santa Anita, including Journalism, Raging Torrent and Kopion, won major races around the country, underlining the excellence we experience every day. Between the Eaton Fire and the ongoing recovery, 2025 has been a challenging year for our neighbors and many of our own Santa Anita family, but we hope `The Great Race Place’ has provided some sense of continuity.”
Track officials said Santa Anita boasted a 99.98% safety mark, continuing its ranking as the safest track in North America among facilities with similar racing and training volumes. They also noted that the addition of horses from Northern California has Santa Anita at its full capacity of 2,000 horses, up 105 from last year, “making the safety improvements even more remarkable.”
According to the track, the winter-spring season say a 10% jump in wagering compared to the same season a year ago, reaching nearly three-quarters of a billion dollars. Some of that increase was attributed to the consolidation of California racing and the influx of horses from Northern California.
“We have witnessed increases in every key category, including 70 additional races and improvements in field sizes, which could only happen through the move to a single circuit,” Bill Nader, president of the Thoroughbred Owners of California, said. “This has helped drive handle increases and reverse the downward trend in overnight purses to restore our foundation and bring renewed life to California racing. We will now carry this momentum into the second half of the year as racing moves to Los Alamitos and then the much anticipated Del Mar summer.”
Racing will return to Santa Anita on Sept. 26 for the five-week autumn meet.