1. Gulfstream Park Location
2. Gulfstream Park Location
3. Gulfstream Park West Location
4. Gulfstream Park West Location
5. Gulfstream Park Horse Racing Location

Gulfstream Park Casino is also open daily. Private viewing experiences and suites are available on a limited basis. A Ticket is needed to enter the property. The North Tent is reserved for Owners, Trainers & Grooms who must present their License for entrance. For more information call Gulfstream Box Office at 954-457-6201. Gulfstream Park, Delray Beach: Address, Phone Number, Gulfstream Park Reviews: 4.5/5. Just a more laid-back location, away from the crowd of Atlantic Avenue. Open 365 days a year, Gulfstream Park seamlessly integrates the thrills of horse racing and excitement of slots. Our casino has been redesigned with socially distant slot and video table games to offer a fun and spacious experience. The Champions Club offers exclusive benefits, such as free entries to giveaways and rewards to all members. 901 S Federal Hwy, Hallandale Beach, FL. The Village at Gulfstream Park (121) 3 min. Speciality & Gift Shops.

Gulfstream Park History

Located in Hallandale Beach, Florida, Gulfstream Park has been a premier Thoroughbred racetrack since 1939. Today, the track is more than just a racetrack, it includes a casino as well as a shopping mall and dining options.

Gulfstream Park conducted its first four-day race meet in front of a crowd of 18,000. The track closed and was reopened in 1944 by James Donn, Sr. for a 20 day meet in December. The first Gulfstream Park Handicap was ran in 1946 and the Florida Derby began in 1952. With the popularity of racing in Florida growing, the park expanded the grandstand and built a clubhouse. With the renovations complete, the Florida Derby was ran the next year with a purse of $100,000, the highest stakes horse racing purse at the time.

In 1959, Gulfstream opened their turf course. Two years later, James Donn Jr. became the president of Gulfstream and erected the world’s largest tote board.

A big break for the park occurred in 1972, when they were awarded “middle dates” and allowed to expand their racing meets to 40 days, from January through April.

In 1982, the Grandstand was renovated again with new architecture and in 1984 the clubhouse renovations were completed. In 1986, the track was renovated into include the new Gulfdome, a domed dining area.

In 1989, Gulfstream was selected to host the Breeders’ Cup for the first time. That year the Breeders’ Cup Classic featured Kentucky Derby and Preakness winner Sunday Silence against the Belmont winner Easy Goer. Sunday Silence, ridden by Chris McCarron, would persevere to win the then $3 million race. The track hosted the Breeders’ Cup again in 1992 and 1999.

In 1990, Gulfstream was purchased by Bertram R. Firestone. In 1994, a half interest was sold to Nigashi Nihon. In 1999, the track was purchased by Magna Entertainment Corporation for $95 million. In 2010, ownership was taken over by Magna’s parent group, MI Developments, Inc. The next year, The Stronach Group took over.

In 2002, the track hosted the Sunshine Millions. This day of racing would pit Florida-breds against California-breds for purse money over $3.6 million. The Sunshine Millions is now hosted only at Gulfstream Park and features the Sunshine Millions Classic and Turf stakes for Florid-breds.

Also in 2002, Gulfstream opened its Thoroughbred training facility, Palm Meadows in Palm Beach County.

In 2006, the track renovated yet again, this time turning itself into a racino. This renovation was highly controversial as fans felt that it ruined the track’s atmosphere.

In 2017, Gulfstream introduce the Pegasus World Cup. The Grade 1 rating was assumed from the Donn Handicap and is ran at 1 1/8th miles over the dirt. The race is open to four-year olds and up. Its inaugural running offered a $12 million purse, making it the richest horse race in the world, surpassing the Dubai World Cup. In 2018, the purse was raised to $18 million, but was reduced to $9 million in 2019. However, with the reduction in purse came the new Pegasus World Cup Turf race with a $7 million purse.

The 2017 winner of the Pegasus World Cup was Arrogate, trained by Bob Baffert and ridden by Mike E. Smith. In 2018, Gun Runner was the winner under Florent Geroux and trained by Steven M. Asmussen.

Famous Horses Hosted by Gulfstream

While Gulfstream has hosted many famous racehorses over the years due to hosting some of the most premier races in the world, such as the Breeders’ Cup. Here are a few that stand out in the minds of most race fans, either because of the pure athleticism or their effect on Thoroughbred breeding history.

Swaps – The Horse of the Year winner and 1955 Kentucky Derby winner, Swaps, came to Gulfstream for the Broward Handicap. The colt set a world-record of 1:39 3/5 for a mile and 70 yards carrying 130 pounds.

Bold Ruler – While the park hosted the famous Bold Ruler, in 1956, the horse was defeated by Gen. Duke in the Florida Derby, setting a world record of 1:46 4/5. Bold Ruler would go on to become the 1957 Horse of the Year after winning the Preakness Stakes and Trenton Handicap. The horse defeated Hall of Famers Round Table and Gallant Man that year.

Holy Bull - In 1994, Holy Bull won the Florida Derby. Although he failed to perform as expected in the 1994 Kentucky Derby, he did have several other major wins including the Haskell Invitational, Travers Stakes and Woodward Stakes. He was also the 1994 Horse of the Year. In 1995, he suffered a career-ending injury in the Donn Handicap at Gulfstream.

Cigar – Cigar won the Donn Handicap and Gulfstream Handicap in 1995. He would go on to become America’s top money earner with $9,999,815 before Curlin broke his record in 2008. He retired to the Kentucky Horse Park to live out his days and passed at the age of 24.

Thunder Gulch – Won the Fountain of Youth Stakes and the Florida Derby in 1995. He would go on to win the Kentucky Derby at 25-1 odds.

Monarchos – Monarchos also won the Florida Derby in 2001 before going on to win the Kentucky Derby. He was scheduled to run in the Donn Handicap as a four-year-old, but after running in a third prep race, he retired in 2002 with a tendon injury.

Barbaro – In 2006, Barbaro won the Holy Bull Stakes and the Florida Derby. He would go on to win the Kentucky Derby. He would go onto the Preakness Stakes, but suffered life-threatening, and eventually fatal, injuries breaking his hind leg in more than twenty places.

Famous Jockeys of Gulfstream

Angel Cordero Jr. – In 1980, Angel Cordero Jr. set a meeting record of 60 winners. He would become the first Puerto Rican to be inducted into the US Racing Hall of Fame. He won the Kentucky Derby three times aboard Cannonade, Bold Forbes and Spend A Buck. He won the Preakness Stakes twice aboard Codex and Gate Dancer and the Belmont once with Bold Forbes.

Julie Krone – Julie Krone won the jockey’s title in 1993 with 98 winners. She became the first female jockey to win a Triple Crown race when she rode Colonial Affair in the Belmont. In 1994, she rode Holy Bull to victory in the Florida Derby. In 1995, she was aboard Cigar in the Donn Handicap. In 2003, she became the first female jockey to win a Breeders’ Cup race.

Jerry Bailey – The Hall of Fame jockey rode his last race on Silver Tree in the Sunshine Millions. He also won the Florida Derby on Barbaro.

Gulfstream’s Championship Meet

While Gulfstream hosts live racing and many different stakes races December 1st through March 31st, there are several premium stakes races to catch on their schedule:

• December 1 – Claiming Crown
• December 8 – Caribbean Classic
• January 19 – Sunshine Millions
• January 26 – Pegasus World Cup
• February 2 – Holy Bull
• March 2 – Fountain of Youth
• March 30 – Florida Derby
• March 30 – Gulfstream Park Mile
• March 30 – Gulfstream Park Oaks

Gulfstream Selections

Check here often for Gulfstream Park picks from expert handicapping service Guaranteed Tip Sheet throughout the live racing meet.

Guaranteed Tip Sheet's

GULFSTREAM FREE PICKS 3/10/21

Gulfstream Park is a racetrack and county-approved casino in Hallandale Beach, Florida. During its annual meet, which spans December through October, it is one of the most important venues for horse racing in the United States.

History[edit]

Gulfstream Park was opened on Wednesday February 1, 1939 conducting a four-day meeting. The initial meeting had a crowd of 18,000. In 1944, the track was reopened by James Donn, Sr. for a 20-day meeting in December. The Gulfstream Park Handicap was first run in 1946 and the Florida Derby began in 1952. In that year the clubhouse was built and the Grandstand seating was expanded.

Gulfstream Park introduced turf racing for the first time in 1959.

In 1952 the clubhouse was erected and a new addition was put on the grandstand. It also marked the first running of the Florida Derby. The following year, the Florida Derby became the first stakes in Florida with a $100,000 purse.

The 1955 Kentucky Derby winner and Horse of the Year Swaps set a then world-record of 1:39 3/5 for a mile and 70 yards while carrying 130 pounds in the Broward Handicap. The following year was just as exciting at Gulfstream when Gen. Duke equaled the world record of 1:46 4/5 in defeating Bold Ruler in the Florida Derby.

In 1959, a new era at Gulfstream began with the opening of its world-acclaimed turf course. In 1961, James Donn Jr. became president of Gulfstream. It also marked the construction of what was then the world's largest tote board.

Following the death of his father, James Donn Jr., Doug Donn was elected Gulfstream Park's president.

In 1961, James Donn Jr. succeeded his father as president of Gulfstream Park. In this year the Clubhouse was enlarged and the then-world's largest totalisator board was installed in the infield. A big break for Gulfstream Park came in 1972, when the track was awarded 'middle dates' for a 40-day January through April meet.

In 1980, Hall of Fame rider Angel Cordero Jr. set a meeting record with 60 winners.

In 1982, the Grandstand was renovated with new architecture and in 1984 the renovation of the clubhouse was completed. In 1986, the renovation of the track was completed with the new Gulfdome, a domed dining terrace. In 1989 Gulfstream Park hosted the Breeders Cup for the first time (which it did again in 1992 and 1999).

Gulfstream played host its first Breeders' Cup World Championships in 1989, highlighted by the Classic match-up between Kentucky Derby and Preakness winner Sunday Silence and Belmont Stakes winner Easy Goer.^[1] Gulfstream would host the Breeders' Cup again in 1992.

In 1990, the track was purchased by Bertram R. Firestone.

Jockey Julie Krone took the jockey's title in 1993 with 98 winners. In 1994, Holy Bull won the Florida Derby while, in 1995, Cigar won the Donn Handicap and Gulfstream Park Handicap on his way to a perfect season. Meanwhile, '95 Florida Derby winner Thunder Gulch would go on to win the Kentucky Derby. Monarchos would repeat Thunder Gulch's feat in 2001.

In 1994, a half interest in the track was sold to Nigashi Nihon.

The track was purchased by Magna Entertainment Corporation, in 1999 for $95 million.^[2] In 2010, the ownership of the track was taken over by Magna parent MI Developments Inc. (MID). The track is currently owned by The Stronach Group since July 3, 2011.

Hal's Hope, winner of the 2000 Florida Derby, would return in 2002 to win the Gulfstream Park Handicap. The 2002 season was also highlighted by the first running of the popular Sunshine Millions, pitting Florida-breds vs. California-breds for purses totaling $3.6 million. Palm Meadows, Gulfstream's state-of-the-art training facility in Palm Beach County, was opened on Nov. 29, 2002.

Trainer Todd Pletcher started his unprecedented run of nine consecutive training titles in 2004.

The track began a $130 million renovation of the grandstand and clubhouse in 2004 and slot machines were approved for the track in 2004. It now hosts all of the races in the series of races known as the Sunshine Millions.The series now consists of the:

In 2006, Hall of Fame jockey Jerry Bailey rode his last race aboard Silver Tree in the Sunshine Millions and the great Barbaro would win the Florida Derby before making headlines with his victory in the Kentucky Derby.

The renovation, first effective for the 2006 spring meeting, was heavily criticized by racegoers and commentators, who felt that the new racino laid its emphasis entirely on the casino part, destroying the racetrack's atmosphere.^[3]

In June, 2011, Tim Ritvo was named President and General Manager of Gulfstream Park Racing & Casino. He was a prominent jockey and racing official at Suffolk Downs in the 1980s before establishing himself in the 1990s as a leading Florida trainer. Ritvo has also served as Vice President and Director of the Florida Horsemen's Benevolent & Protective Association.^[4]

In April, 2012, Javier Castellano, who collected his first Gulfstream title by riding a record 112 winners, scored his 3000th career success aboard Virtuously on Feb. 24 and Todd Pletcher, who claimed an unprecedented ninth consecutive training title at Gulfstream with 72 trips to the winner's circle, recorded his 3,000 career victory when he saddled Spring Hill Farm for a winning performance on Feb. 11.^[5]

In 2012, Stronach Group named Tim Ritvo, Chief Operating Officer of its Racing Division^[6]

March 2, 2020 Tim Ritvo stepped down as COO of Stronach Group operated tracks, which include the troubled Santa Anita racetrack in California. He left to “pursue other opportunities.”^[7]

Stakes Races[edit]

Gulfstream Park is home to the following graded stakes: (listed by grade and then year inaugurated)
Grade I:

• Florida Derby (1952)
• Pegasus World Cup (2017)
• Pegasus World Cup Turf (2019)

Grade II:

• Fountain of Youth Stakes (1945)
• Gulfstream Park Mile Stakes (1946)
• Fort Lauderdale Stakes (1947)
• Pan American Stakes (1962)
• Gulfstream Park Oaks (1971)
• Holy Bull Stakes (1972)
• Inside Information Stakes (1976)
• Princess Rooney Stakes (1985)
• Davona Dale Stakes (1988)
• Mac Diarmida Stakes (1995)

Grade III: (listed by grade and then year inaugurated)

• Mr. Prospector Stakes (1946)
• Suwannee River Stakes (1947)
• Appleton Stakes (1952)
• Orchid Stakes (1954)
• Canadian Turf Stakes (1967)
• Tropical Turf Stakes (1972)
• Gulfstream Park Sprint Championship (1972)
• W. L. McKnight Handicap (1973)
• Rampart Stakes (1976)
• Sugar Swirl Stakes (1981)
• Forward Gal Stakes (1981)
• Herecomesthebride Stakes (1984)
• Smile Sprint Stakes (1984)
• The Very One Stakes (1984)
• Fred W. Hooper Stakes (1985)
• Honey Fox Stakes (1985)
• Swale Stakes (1985)
• Sweetest Chant Stakes (1986)
• Hal's Hope Stakes (1990)
• Royal Delta Stakes (1991)
• Hurricane Bertie Stakes (2001)
• Marshua's River Stakes (2001)
• Gulfstream Park Turf Sprint Stakes (2011)
• Kitten's Joy Stakes (2012)

Non-graded: (partial list, listed Alphabetically)

• Azalea Stakes (1972)
• Carry Back Stakes (1975)
• Dania Beach Stakes (2008)
• Hutcheson Stakes (1955)
• Skip Away Handicap (1987)
• Palm Beach Stakes (1987)
• Spectacular Bid Stakes (1986)
• Gulfstream Park Stakes (inaugurated in 2012, Reveron first winner)

(FTBOA) Florida Sire stakes:

Gulfstream Park Location

Pegasus Park[edit]

In September 2013 an expansion was announced beginning with the construction of a 110 feet bronze statue of Pegasus killing a dragon.^[8] Construction began in March 2014 and finished on the statues themselves in December of that year with the surrounding rock features and fountains to be completed in late 2015. Underneath Pegasus will be a theatre and the dragon will breathe fire when completed. They are the world's largest equine and European dragon statues. Pegasus is also the second largest statue in the United States after the Statue of Liberty.

Track attributes[edit]

The current dirt course is one and one-eighth miles in circumference, with a one-mile backstretch chute. The turf course is one mile in circumference; depending on the race day, the portable rail can be moved to the inside or outside of the course, thereby changing the circumference. The track can seat 16,627 people.

Gulfstream Park Location

The track originally had a one-mile dirt oval and a 7 furlong turf oval prior to the 2005 renovation.

On Opening Day, December 1, 2012, of Gulfstream Park's 2012-2013 meet, the track is hosting the 14th running of racing's Claiming Crown.^[9] The Claiming Crown has become the most important event for horse racing's claiming runners, and Gulfstream Park is raising the purses for each individual race in honor of this.

Entertainment[edit]

Gulfstream Park has, in recent years, been a venue for concerts, with performances taking place on the grounds outside the grandstand. Reserved seats to the concerts are sold in advance, and others paying normal admission to the track may watch the concert in standing room. Various singers and groups who were popular in earlier times perform at Gulfstream as part of their tours. The track was also host to the Miami Pop Festival from December 28–30, 1968, featuring over thirty performing bands and artists, including the Grateful Dead.

Gulfstream Park West Location

TV Personalites[edit]

• Gary Seibel (1991–1993)
• Caton Bredar (1994–1999, 2010)
• Jennifer Burke (1999–2002)
• Joanne Jones (2003–2006)
• Ron Nicolleti (2007–2009, 2011–present)
• Rolly Hoyt (2007–2009)
• Larry Collmus (2007–2016)
• Travis Stone (2010)
• Alyssa Ali (2010)
• Jessica Pacheco (2011–2012)
• Brian Skirka (2011-2013)
• Christina Bossinakis (2012–present)
• John DeSantis (2012-2013)
• Pete Aiello (2013–present)
• Gabby Gaudet (2015–present)
• Andy Serling (2015-2016)
• Acacia Courtney (2016– May 2020)
• Jason Blewitt (2017–present)

See also[edit]

References[edit]

1. ^'Gulfstream Park Race Track Information'. HorseRacing.net. Retrieved 2020-05-28.
2. ^Durso, Joseph (1999-07-07). 'HORSE RACING; Gulfstream Park Has Sale Agreement'. The New York Times. ISSN0362-4331.
3. ^Andrew, Beyer (2006-01-17). 'Construction of New Gulfstream Park Points to Destruction'. Washington Post.
4. ^'Ritvo Named Gulfstream Park President and General Manager'. 2011-07-25. Archived from the original on 2013-01-24.
5. ^'Gulfstream Meeting Took Off Running and Kept Going'. 2012-04-08. Archived from the original on 2012-07-01.
6. ^'Stronach Group Names Rogers President, Ritvo COO of Racing Division'. 2012-06-08. Archived from the original on 2015-01-29.
7. ^'Group that owns Santa Anita dismisses its COO'. ESPN.com. 2020-03-03. Retrieved 2020-09-05.
8. ^'Pegasus Park'. Archived from the original on 2015-01-20.
9. ^'Claiming Crown Moves to Gulfstream'. BloodHorse.com. 2012-03-13.

Gulfstream Park West Location

External links[edit]

Gulfstream Park Horse Racing Location

Coordinates: 25°58′43″N80°08′17″W / 25.978474°N 80.13799°W