Last Dance for Bidders

- Governor Spitzer, flush from an agreement with legislative leaders on what is at least some partial reform on the lax campaign finance laws in the state (he negotiated with aides to Bruno rather than the Senator himself), announced today that he will make his long-awaited selection of the next franchise holder (or holders) on September 4. He also requested that each of the four bidders submit new proposals "to reflect its current structure and financing or to confirm that there have been no material changes since the last submission." Since the last proposals, Capital Play has taken on Mohegan Sun, Empire has lost the backing of the NYTHA, and Excelsior has added real estate developer Steve Roth. He also invited bidders to submit new ideas, take on new partners or partner amongst themselves, and express any interest in running racing or slots alone.

Unless there are any surprises (i.e., the four team up as a single entity - NYRA runs racing, Excelsior runs the racino, Capital Play conducts Ladies Nights, and Empire takes out the garbage), I personally believe that the state is merely looking to formalize any changes in writing, and I don't really expect Spitzer to deviate from whatever he has in mind now; which is, reportedly, a combination of NYRA and Excelsior. NYRA's land claim, which state lawyers take seriously according to Tom Precious' report on Bloodhorse.com, is not going away; so this option would allow the matter to be settled without a court battle (assuming an agreement on the land is part of the deal), and also allow Spitzer to take credit for personally righting the NYRA ship with his threatened prosecution as attorney general. Capital Play is an intriguing choice, but at this point I'd be rather shocked if Spitzer awards them the deal given their foreign roots; and in fact, I think they've been bucking long odds from the very beginning.

As for Empire, Jeff Perlee told Thoroughbred Times: “We appreciate the Governor’s statement and share his wishes to conclude this process and bring needed change to New York’s racing industry.” In my opinion, if anyone had actually read the Inspector General's scathing assessment of Empire, its shady beginnings, and its proposed giveaways to Magna/Churchill (none of which have been refuted publicly), they'd have been thrown out on their ears long before this point. Reading Perlee speak in this manner is like hearing Michael Vick promote himself for SI's Sportsperson of the Year. With the withdrawal of the NYTHA's support (a small detail which has not yet been noted on Empire's website!), they bring nothing to the table. They have zero shot (or at least they should), and Spitzer would do them the favor by saving them from spending the money to even bother writing another proposal. They may need it for the $500,000 that they may be obligated to repurchase Magna and Churchill's shares with.

- Here's some fantastic news for all thoroughbred racing fans. The Thoroughbred Daily News, the self-anointed "Wall Street Journal for the Thoroughbred industry worldwide," is changing their business model from subscription-based to advertising-based as of August 1. So everyone will be able to partake of the invaluable information they provide on a daily basis - with emphasis on international racing, pedigree and auctions that we just don't get elsewhere. Actually, I'm a little upset because as a subscriber (it came free with a subscription to Bloodhorse), it made me feel smarter than those who didn't get it. Now, everyone can and we'll all be better informed for it.

- Thanks to Jessica for steering us to Bob and Ike's Picks, where we learn that the winning Pick Six ticket was a paper one cashed by an 80 year old man! Nice picking there, guy!! (And as Kevin said, Whew!)