Churchill Downs aims for 40-50% capacity for 2021 Derby

Churchill Downs Inc. is aiming to have 40 to 50 percent of its reserved seating capacity available for spectators at the 2021 Kentucky Derby.

Churchill Downs CEO Bill Carstanjen said during a conference call with analysts Thursday that he expects the race to be held at the company's namesake track in Louisville on its traditional date of the first Saturday in May, which will be May 1 next year.

"We are starting with the assumption that we will limit the number of reserved seats to 40% to 50% of capacity," he said. "And we will delay selling any general admission tickets which do not come with seats until we are closer to the date of the Derby. We do not sell many general admission tickets this far out from the event in any case.

"If and as the circumstances surrounding the pandemic improve, then we will sell more reserved seats and consider selling general admission tickets."

Carstanjen also said the company has paused its historical racing machine and grandstand project at Turfway Park in Florence, Ky., amid questions about the legality of exacta historical racing machines in the state.

"In late September, the Kentucky Supreme Court issued a decision concerning the legality of a company called exactas HRMs under Kentucky law," he said. "While we do not have any exacta HRMs at any of our facilities and therefore are not directly impacted by the Kentucky Supreme Court ruling, we feel it is prudent to refrain from further significant capital investment until the Kentucky legislature has an opportunity to review the decision and the technicalities in the current law during the legislative session starting in early 2021."

Carstanjen noted in the call that Churchill Downs opened its Newport Racing & Gaming Facility on Oct. 2 in Newport, Ky., which is about 10 miles away from Turfway.

Churchill Downs announced the Turfway project in October 2019, when it acquired the racetrack from an affiliate of JACK Entertainment LLC and Hard Rock International for about $46 million. At the time, it said it would demolish the existing grandstand, making way for development of Turfway Park Racing & Gaming, a live and historical Thoroughbred racing facility that would cost about $100 million.

Carstanjen said the company remains paused on its $300 million hotel and HRM facility at the Louisville track "until we are past the pandemic and can again model the future with more certainty."