The Last Post Time For Hollywood Park

The final race meeting at historic Hollywood Park begins Thursday and continues to December 22, with 27 race dates on the calendar.  Stalls at the track will remain open through January, but after the conclusion of the meet the track will cease operations and the site will be redeveloped by the owners. The future of the track has been up in the air for several years, after the owners failed to convince the State of California to allow for increased gambling options at the track.  Santa Anita and Los Altimos will expand their racing calendars in 2014 to make up for some of the loss to California racing.

Hollywood first to host Breeders' Cup

Hollywood Park opened in 1938, with the first Chairman being Harry Warner of Warner Brothers movie studios, and included entertainers such as Al Jolson on its board of directors. The track was closed between 1942 and 1944 while it was being used as a storage facility for the US military. In 1949 the grandstand and clubhouse were destroyed in a fire, but rebuilt and reopened in 1950. The track has been home to a number of major stakes races, including the Grade I Hollywood Gold Cup. Hollywood Park also played host to the inaugural Breeders’ Cup World Championships in 1984.

Major stakes on the schedule for final meet

Highlights on the calendar for the final race meet at Hollywood include the Turf Festival weekend of November 29 to December 1, featuring the running of the $250,000 Grade I Hollywood Derby and the $250,000 Grade I Matriarch Stakes, as well as three other graded-stakes events. The next Saturday will see the running of the $500,000 Grade I Hollywood Starlet, while the final major stakes race at Hollywood will go on December 14, with the $750,000 Grade I Cash Call Futurity Stakes.