Turfway Park Cancels Premier Fall Racing Event

LOUISVILLE, Ky.  -- Turfway Park has scratched its premier fall racing event, marking the latest setback for the struggling track in northern Kentucky.

The Kentucky Cup Day of Champions has been a launching pad in the past for horses prepping for the Breeders' Cup, but Turfway said Wednesday it's canceling the event for the second time in three years.

Not even a sponsorship by WinStar Farm, a prominent horse farm in Kentucky's bluegrass region, could save the Kentucky Cup this fall.

WinStar's sponsorship helped revive the event last year. Turfway says WinStar was still a willing sponsor, but the track shifted its share of the series' funding into non-stakes races.

Turfway has said it's struggling to keep pace with purses offered by other tracks that benefit from an infusion of casino gambling money.