The Jockey Club Tour on FOX will bring viewers to the opening weekend at two iconic American racetracks, Del Mar and Saratoga Race Course, on Sunday, July 20, with a two-hour telecast featuring the Eddie Read Stakes (gr. IT) and TVG Coaching Club American Oaks (gr. I).
The show will air from 5:30-7:30 p.m. EDT on FOX Sports 1. On-air duties will be handled by Greg Wolf, Richard Migliore, Andy Serling, and Alyssa Ali at Saratoga, and Simon Bray at Del Mar. The America's Best Racing betting challenge between Andy Serling and Simon Bray, won by Bray last week, will be continued.
Both races carry purses of $300,000 and are run at 1 1/8 miles, with the Eddie Read on turf for 3-year-olds and up and the TVG Coaching Club American Oaks on dirt for 3-year-old fillies. Princess of Sylmar, who won the Longines Kentucky Oaks (gr. I), the TVG Coaching Club American Oaks, and two other grade I races in 2013, will be spotlighted during the show.
The telecast will also feature segments on historic racing moments, local events and social scenes, and a comparison of fashion styles between the tracks.
"The Del Mar and Saratoga meets are true gems on the Thoroughbred racing calendar and they are always among the leaders in daily attendance," said Jason Wilson, president of TJC Media Ventures. "The Jockey Club Tour on FOX focuses on racing's horses, people and places, and these are the perfect venues to showcase America's best racing."
Other segments of the show will be devoted to the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame, Thoroughbred ownership, and interviews with Chris Kay of the New York Racing Association and Joe Harper of the Del Mar Thoroughbred Club.
The next Jockey Club Tour on Fox is Aug. 10, featuring the Saratoga Special Stakes (gr. II) from Saratoga. On Aug. 17, Saratoga's Sword Dancer Invitational Stakes (gr. IT) is the show's centerpiece.