Some of the best winter dirt racing in North America is coming to the Midwest, as the Oaklawn Park meet begins this Friday, December 8th.
The 2023-24 season will extend until May 4th, when the track shuts down on the same day as the 150th Kentucky Derby.
Racing at Oaklawn brings big fields, good betting races for handicappers, an excellent Stakes program, and very strong purses fueled by gaming revenue from the Oaklawn casino.
The Hot Springs, Arkansas track will offer total purse distribution for the five-month meet of $60 million with average daily purses topping $900,000.
The high-profile Oaklawn Stakes schedule will be headlined (as always) by the $1.5 million dollar Arkansas Derby, a Grade 1 race for Kentucky Derby hopefuls that will be run on March 30th.
Oaklawn doesn’t stop there though, as the track also will offer three other races with $1.25 million purses including the Grade 2 Rebel Stakes, the Grade 1 Apple Blossom Handicap, and the Grade 2 Oaklawn Handicap.
For horseplayers, the Oaklawn Park meet is more about the excellent day-to-day handicapping offerings than the Stakes races.
The dirt racing contested throughout the season at Oaklawn is on par with the best dirt racing being conducted anywhere at this time of year.
Oaklawn will conduct live racing mainly on a three-days-a-week basis during the meet – Fridays through Sundays – with Thursdays being added during the heart of the meet in March and Monday cards on New Year’s Day and President’s Day.
Oaklawn is a dirt racing-only meet with no turf course.
The Oaklawn dirt track is a one-mile oval and the vast majority of its races will be run at three distances – six furlongs, one mile, and 1 1/16 miles.
There is an alternate finish line at the sixteenth pole which accommodates one-mile races with a fair run-up into the first turn.
Best of luck to all who play Oaklawn.
