The Maryland Jockey Club and Maryland Thoroughbred Horsemen’s Association have agreed to an 11-day live summer meet at Laurel Park.
According to a release, live racing will return to Maryland on Saturday, July 31 following a 10-week break. The mini-meet will include two Maryland-bred stakes races –the Jameela on Aug. 14 and the Mister Diz on Aug. 21.
The dates and stakes schedule were approved by the Maryland Racing Commission via phone poll and will be officially ratified at the next meeting July 20, Mike Hopkins, executive director of the commission said in a statement.
The meet, which will end Aug. 22, will consist of live racing taking place on Friday (3:35 p.m. twilight post time), Saturday and Sunday for three consecutive weeks following opening weekend. First post for the weekend dates will be 1:10 p.m.
"The mini-meet is important for the local horsemen who prefer to run in-state rather than shipping out-of-town," said Maryland Jockey Club president Tom Chuckas in a release. "The Friday, Saturday, Sunday format worked well last year and we are looking forward to the second half of the racing season. Expect to see lots of turf racing."
At the conclusion of the meet, live racing shifts to Timonium for a seven-day state fair meet. The Laurel Park fall meeting will begin after the Labor Day holiday.