The National Thoroughbred Racing Association announced March 23 that the organization’s website, NTRA.com, will offer free, live video streaming of several major 3-year-old stakes races leading up to this year’s Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands (gr. I). The Webcasts are part of the NTRA Live! series, which made its debut in March 2010 and presented numerous Kentucky Derby and Breeders’ Cup World Championships prep races to a worldwide audience.
Kicking off the slate of NTRA Live! Webcasts for 2011 will be the April 3 Florida Derby (gr. I) from Gulfstream Park in Hallandale, Fla. This Webcast will also include a review of important Triple Crown prep races run earlier this year. Other races scheduled to be shown live in April are the Resorts World New York Casino Wood Memorial and the Toyota Blue Grass Stakes (both gr. I).
Hosted by ESPN analyst and NFL Network host Randy Moss, NTRA Live! features interviews with handicappers and on-track analysts, interactive chats with viewers, pre-and post-race analysis, handicapping selections, easy access to free past performance data and advance deposit wagering platforms, as well as other original and unique programming components. The programs will be produced and directed again this year by Tim Turrell, who has produced numerous telecasts on horse racing and other sports for ESPN, The Golf Channel, and others.
“Last year’s NTRA Live! Webcasts were extremely well received, and we want to again offer fans around the world a live, broadcast-quality presentation of these highly anticipated races,” said Keith Chamblin, senior vice president of the NTRA, in a release. “We also want to take advantage of this Web-based platform by utilizing content elements that wouldn’t necessarily be available to us via traditional programming.”
The tentative spring schedule for NTRA Live! (Air times TBA) is:
Sunday, April 3—Florida Derby (live) plus a review of earlier 2011 Kentucky Derby preps.
Saturday, April 9—Resorts World New York Casino Wood Memorial (live) and preview of the Santa Anita Derby
Saturday, April 16—Toyota Blue Grass Stakes (live).
Date TBD—Randy Moss’s comprehensive Kentucky Derby preview.