Horse racing may be over at Turf Paradise, but other tracks plan to keep going

• The Prescott Valley track last held a race in September 2022.
• Auther says the track didn't have the money to host races this year, but taking the year off helped their financial situation, which he believes will be good enough for a 2024 season.
• "There's nothing guaranteed, but either with a partner or a new buyer I think Arizona Downs will be up and running," Auther says.

State of play: Turf Paradise owner Jerry Simms last week announced his retirement and said the north Phoenix track would cease all live racing and simulcasting as of Oct. 1.

• That means Turf Paradise won't hold its season that was scheduled to begin in early November, though Simms told Axios Phoenix Monday there's still a chance the track will continue racing under a new buyer.
• CT Realty had been under contract to buy the track and was expected to continue live racing for two years while it redeveloped the property into a business park, but the company backed out of plans to purchase Turf Paradise.

Between the lines: The potential closure of Turf Paradise, and possibility there won't be more horse racing there, could be a game changer for Arizona Downs, Auther says.

• Arizona Downs is interested in bringing on a new qualified buyer or investor and has spoken with potential buyers.
• "I think the time's right. It's a different animal now that Turf isn't going to be around," Auther says.
• Arizona Downs had previously been under contract to sell to the Stronach Group, which owns horse tracks in California, Florida and Maryland, but it pulled out in June, he says.

Meanwhile, Rillito Park Racetrack in Tucson plans to hold a racing season next year, most likely in March and April, general manager Michael Weiss tells Axios Phoenix.

Yes, but: Auther downplays Rillito's significance to Arizona's racing scene, noting its shorter track, shorter racing season and fewer horse stalls than Arizona Downs or Turf Paradise.

• Weiss says Rillito Park is still a draw for racing fans, and many horse trainers and owners love the track, too.
• Though Rillito Park's track is shorter and focused more on quarterhorses, which are bred for speed over shorter distances, it still race plenty of thoroughbreds as well.

Zoom out: Leroy Gessmann, executive director of the Arizona Horsemen's Benevolent and Protective Association, told Axios Phoenix last week he'd spoken with people who are interested in potentially building a new race track in the Valley.

• That track would likely be on the edge of town, he speculated, saying it would be too expensive to buy Turf Paradise and continue running it as a racetrack.
• Auther tells us he considers a new track unlikely, saying: "It's very expensive. And let's face it — there isn't much money in it."

Catch up quick: Author, his brothers, Dave and Mike, and a business partner bought Arizona Downs in 2018 and reopened it the following year.

• The track, formerly known as Yavapai Downs, had been in bankruptcy and hadn't hosted racing since 2010.