Turf Paradise, Arizona Downs Both Under Separate Contracts To Sell; Legislative Relief Key To Future

Two racetracks in Arizona are under contract to sell to different entities, according to a report by Axios Phoenix published on April 12. Axios indicated that Turf Paradise is under contract and still in negotiations with CT Realty, while Arizona Downs is under contract with The Stronach Group. Neither sale is final.

The Turf Paradise sale also includes Revolutionary Racing as a partner on the racing and gaming side, the company's chairman, Larry Lucas, confirmed. Daily Racing Form first reported the involvement of Revolutionary Racing, which reopened dormant

Colonial Downs in 2019, built a thriving business through historical horse racing (HHR) gaming machines, and sold it to Churchill Downs Inc. in 2022. Revolutionary Racing is also in the process of building a Quarter Horse racing facility with an HHR casino in eastern Kentucky.

“There is a huge upside in Arizona for horse racing, but we need legislative relief,” Lucas told Paulick Report. Lucas did not want to be specific but said he hopes the assistance comes in the form of economic relief for pari-mutuel wagering.

Racing at Turf Paradise will continue for the next year or two, whether or not the Arizona legislature approves that assistance, Lucas indicated. In the meantime, plans for development of non-racing property at Turf Paradise will move forward once the deal is closed. Opened in 1956, Turf Paradise was purchased by current owner Jerry Simms in 2000.

James Watson is the managing partner of CT Realty and has made his career in commercial real estate and development. He served four years as a commissioner on the California Horse Racing Board in the 1990s. Arizona Downs is expected to continue racing, though it did not apply to the racing commission for dates this season because “it doesn't have the finances to hold a summer season” co-owner Tom Auther told Axios.

Lucas told the Paulick Report he is working “hand in hand” with The Stronach Group on legislative assistance.

BY TRACY RENCK, PSN EDITOR

The ProRodeo world has lost a hall of famer in rodeo clown/ barrelman Bobby Clark. Clark passed away April 13. He was 93.

Clark and his brother Gene were inducted together into the ProRodeo Hall of Fame in Colorado Springs in 1997.

From the 1940s through the 1970s, these ProRodeo Hall of Famers set the standard for rodeo entertainment,