What we learned from Ritvo’s TVG interview; plus watch in full

Tim Ritvo, COO of The Stronach Group, sat down for a 30-plus minute interview with TVG’s Britney Eurton that aired Saturday morning. And it offered quite a bit of substance, with this statement the backbone of Ritvo’s efforts to revitalize racing in Southern California:

“From a Stronach Group perspective, we are truly committed to making this work,” he said. “We are committed to Thoroughbred racing. We sit on very valuable properties in the North at Golden Gate and the South here (at Santa Anita Park).

"But the commitment from the family as we transition from Frank to Belinda is to make the most of Thoroughbred racing — to take Thoroughbred racing to another level and not just keeping our status quo.”

Ahead of opening day at Santa Anita, Dec. 26, here’s what we learned from Ritvo about the future there…

Ritvo will seek more race dates

Tasked by the Stronachs to also change the racing dynamic previously at Gulfstream Park, Ritvo noted that the meet there has expanded from 60 days to 240 days.

“It’s really well-balanced,” he said. “All the great races are still there, and I want that for Santa Anita. The prestige and serious culture that Santa Anita brings to the table, we want to maintain that, but we just want to extend the program a little bit by filling in the meat and potato horses.”

Gaps in the Southern California calendar when Santa Anita and Del Mar aren’t in action are currently filled by Los Alamitos.

Ritvo added that “a well-balanced program will be the savior of the sport.”

He wants to see field size grow

Santa Anita averages about eight runners per race. Over time, Ritvo would like to see that number closer to or exceeding nine.

He touched on the downgrade of three Grade 1 races going into 2019 — the Santa Margarita, Triple Bend and Zenyatta — and said field size likely played a part in that. But he called the “corrections” necessary and expects those stakes to run with larger fields next year, even if it means a Grade 1 stalwart ships East for another spot.

“When you don’t have an Arrogate or a California Chrome in there scaring everyone off, it’s amazing what happens,” Ritvo said.

The jackpot Pick 6 is here to stay

Introduced since Ritvo relocated to California, the 20-cent minimum wager, which builds a pool over time should no single ticket cash, replaced the traditional $2 Pick 6 at Santa Anita. Ritvo said his data supports keeping it that way at least “for a while.”

“It just gives a person a wider opportunity to play a bigger ticket,” he added. “We think with the $2 Pick 6, if you’re two by two by two through, it’s just too expensive for the average customer.

“…A 20-cent Rainbow 6 involves everybody. It allows everybody to play, and the bigger gambler can continue to play bigger tickets if he wants. We’ve seen some success with it. We’ve seen a lot of success with it.

“And the thing is, if the jackpot doesn’t get hit, we’ve seen some really huge mandatory payout days — $15 million at Gulfstream, $16 million. These are massive days that help the purse account and help the racetrack.”

Touching on personnel changes

While Ritvo did not mention names, there has been a notable amount of turnover in prominent positions at Santa Anita in recent weeks, namely Michael Wrona’s ousting from the announcer’s booth and Rick Hammerle’s removal as racing secretary.

“We want to initiate change,” Ritvo said. “We came in and gave everybody a fair opportunity. We didn’t come in and clean house. We kind of told people what the mission was and the direction we wanted to go in, and the guys that have done it are still here. Some that aren’t, we made some changes in those positions.”

The most high-profile replacement came with Frank Mirahmadi’s hiring as track announcer. He auditioned for the job along with Wrona back in 2016, but that was before Ritvo headed up operations at Santa Anita.

“Frank brings excitement. He buys into the sport. He’s a horseman. He’s a bettor. He’s an announcer. He goes to all the events. It’s kind of what you’ve seen at other tracks what we’ve done.”

Ritvo said Mirahmadi will be seen at post position draws and other racetrack gatherings, working as much more than the guy behind the mic in the afternoon.