SELMA, TX- The 2023 Quarter Horse live racing season at Retama Park resumed on Wednesday, July 19 and fans responded enthusiastically. The grandstand and track apron filled on Friday and Saturday evening with Quarter Horse racing fans watching and wagering on the very competitive TQHA Sale Futurity trials.

“To see the crowds enjoying quality horseracing was fantastic,” said Bryan Pettigrew, Vice President and General Manager of Texas Racing Operations. “The horsemen were effusive in their praise of the improvements we made to our racing surface. James Rodriguez and Jose Coronado and their staff worked tirelessly, and we thank them for their efforts.”

Pettigrew was also pleased with the handle, especially on Saturday, July 22 when $129,538 was wagered on-track with an export handle of $653,450.

“Saturday’s figure marked the third highest export handle since 2019,” added Pettigrew. “Wagering was solid for all four cards last week, and Thursday through Saturday produced three of the top 11 handle numbers since 2018.”

There was a strong collaboration with the Texas Racing Commission, Texas Quarter Horse Association (TQHA) and Texas Horsemen’s Partnership (THP) to get racing back on track in San Antonio, after a power outage in June.

“The Retama Park live racing meet is very important to our horsemen,” said Marsha Rountree, Executive Director of the Texas Horsemen's Partnership, LLP. “We appreciate their support and look forward to continued successes for the remainder of the 2023 Quarter Horse season.”

Rob Werstler, Executive Director of the TQHA was encouraged with the weekend as the 2023 TQHA Yearling Sale will be held on Friday, July 28 and Saturday, July 29 in San Antonio. Records were set in 2021 and again last year with two sale toppers purchased for $150,000 each. In 2022, the TQHA Yearling sale concluded with gross receipts of $6,004,300, a 37% increase year-over-year.

“It is always important to have a good racing season at Retama as we make final preparations for our Yearling Sale,” said Werstler. “Our Sale catalog features 414 yearlings and if they pass through the sale ring they will be eligible for the TQHA Sale Futurity the following year. To see so many talented sale graduates compete in trials last weekend meant a lot to our organization.”

2023 TQHA Yearling Sale Set for Friday, July 28 and Saturday, July 29

The annual TQHA Yearling Sale will take place at the Exposition Hall at The Freeman in San Antonio, Texas. The catalog Texas-bred yearlings will pass through the sale ring, beginning at 10:00 a.m. (Central) on both days.

Also this year the TQHA will be auctioning off breeding's to six stallions prior to the start of each day's session. Three breedings will be auctioned off on Friday and three on Saturday. Breedings to Bolt Of Fire, Chilitos, Dulce Sin Tacha, Flying Cowboy 123, One Fabulous Eagle and This Is An Eagle will be offered. Funds raised from this auction will go to the TQHA PAC. Details of the auction will be included in the catalog.  For additional information visit the TQHA website at tqha.com.

About Retama Park

Retama Park is a Class 1 pari-mutuel horse racetrack located in Selma, Texas, just 20 minutes from downtown San Antonio. Live Quarter Horse races take place each summer, while simulcast wagering and races from around the world are shown daily. Managed by Penn Entertainment Inc. (NASDAQ – PENN), Retama Park opened in 1995 and will host its 28th year of operation from July 19 to September 2, 2023. For more information and racing schedules, please visit www.RetamaPark.comfollow on: Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, TikTok and YouTube.

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Photos:  Coady Photography