Will Rogers Downs Race Track Guide

Rogers County, Oklahoma, USA.

Predominantly a gaming facility, Will Rogers Downs is one of the newer venues and is owned by Cherokee Nation. The facility features a 2,700-seater grandstand, which is situated along the home straight, while Will Rogers also holds 250 electronic gaming machines and the largest RV park in Oklahoma.

Unlike most US tracks, Will Rogers Downs doesn’t have a turf course. Instead the Oklahoma venue just has a mile-round dirt track, which plays host to thoroughbred racing between the months of March and May. Racegoers can witness Quarterhorse racing between September and November, while Paint and Appaloosa racing takes place throughout the other months.

Ty Kennedy, Floyd Wethey Jnr, Benny Landeros, Leandro Goncalves.

The best jockeys often ride for the top trainers at Will Rogers Downs and it is a common occurrence to see them rack up numerous successes on each card.

Ty Kennedy is a new addition to the track this year but he is riding out of his skin and currently leads the jockey’s title. The young pilot has a great feel for pace and gets to partner a large number of horses for trainers Karl Broberg and Robertino Diodoro.

Floyd Wethey Jnr is the reigning champion rider at Will Rogers Downs and usually gets the pick of Scott E Young’s powerful string. He has a good riding style and is clearly one of the best jockeys to have on your side here.

Benny Landeros and Leandro Goncalves aren’t seen in the saddle anywhere near as often as the aforementioned duo of Kennedy and Wethey Jnr, but they both boast prolific strike-rates and are well worth keeping on side.

Scott E Young, Karl Broberg, Robertino Diodoro, Kenneth Nolen.

Scott E Young is based at Will Rogers Downs and has the largest string available to him out of any trainer. His barn remains in red-hot form throughout the two-month-long meet each season and he is a talented young trainer on the up.

Karl Broberg, one of the winningest trainers in the US, and Robertino Diodoro, who has a huge string and is often seen at Oaklawn Park and Turf Paradise among others, are often successful here, while Kenneth Nolen’s runners are often punted on track.

The draw is not overly important, although the lower the gate, the more chance you have of saving ground around the bends. More prevalent is early speed. Getting into a prominent position at Will Rogers Downs is crucial with very few horses being able to come from off the pace here.

Will Rogers Downs hosts a number of Stakes races, most of which are worth a total purse of $50,000. However, the feature race is the Clem McSpadden Memorial Route 66 Stakes.

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