The Stronach Group has contributed over $300,000 in campaign contributions to Tallahassee politicians since late 2023 as part of efforts to decouple racing and casino licenses in Florida, according to former Kentucky State Senator Damon Thayer.
Thayer, who recently accepted a position as senior advisor to the Thoroughbred Racing Initiative, is working to combat decoupling efforts that threaten Florida’s racing industry. He appeared as the Gainesway Guest of the Week on the TDN Writers’ Room podcast, presented by Keeneland.
“For whatever reason, Belinda Stronach got the House Budget Committee Chairman, Chairman Lawrence McClure, to be a big supporter of decoupling as well as Representative Adam Anderson, who has part of Tampa Bay Downs in his district,” Thayer explained during the interview.
The former senator identified two key factors driving the legislation: substantial campaign contributions and personal connections.
“The campaign contributions and the friendship are the only motivation that we can find,” he said. “The House Budget Committee chairman wants this. And nobody wants to make the House Budget Committee chairman mad because he controls the line-item appropriations in the budget.”
While the decoupling bill has advanced in the Florida House, it has yet to be introduced in the Senate — where Thayer believes the racing industry stands a better chance.
“When we got in, we knew that the skids were greased in the House, although we seem to have slowed it down a little bit,” Thayer said. “But our plan has always been to defeat the bill in the Senate.”
The veteran politician emphasized the economic significance of Florida’s racing industry.
“We’re pushing this message, that this is a $3.3 billion industry. And it has nearly 33,000 jobs,” he noted. “It’s bigger than college athletics. It’s as big as the ports and is on a similar footing as the citrus industry. I’m still just aghast that an industry like this would be under attack.”
Thayer acknowledged that maintaining the status quo at Gulfstream Park with 200 racing days per year is unlikely. Much of his current work involves developing contingency plans should Gulfstream cease racing operations.
“In Florida, you’re going to need a white knight to come in and buy Gulfstream Park and operate it as a racetrack,” he said. “I’m not sure that Stronach would sell it as a racetrack. The long-term future of Gulfstream Park is probably in question as a racetrack, even if we kill the decoupling bill.”
Alternative options being explored include reopening Hialeah, shifting prime winter dates to Tampa Bay Downs, constructing a new facility north of Broward County, relocating racing to Ocala, or having The Jockey Club and Breeders’ Cup collaborate to establish a new track.
When asked about The Stronach Group’s threats to immediately close Gulfstream if the decoupling bill fails, Thayer pointed to financial realities.
“They can threaten to shut the place down, but then they’d have to shut down the casino,” he explained. “They’ve got 500 slot machines. By the way, under the law, they could put in 2,000 slot machines and they’ve only been operating 500. But their average gaming revenue out of those machines is $39 million a year.”
The podcast, also sponsored by the Pennsylvania Horse Breeders’ Association, West Point Thoroughbreds, the KTOB, 1/ST Racing and 1/ST TV, featured WinStar stallion Heartland in its “Fastest Horse of the Week” segment. Touchuponastar (Star Guitar) earned the distinction after posting a 109 when winning the GII New Orleans Classic at Fair Grounds.
The TDN Writers’ Room team also reviewed last weekend’s Kentucky Derby prep races and previewed upcoming events, including the GI Arkansas Derby and GI Florida Derby. Discussion centered on whether ‘TDN Rising Star’ Cornucopian (Into Mischief) can win the Arkansas Derby for trainer Bob Baffert in just his second career start and first race beyond six furlongs.
