A Q&A With Bill Knauf

[Wandering Eyes]

Bill Knauf, a long-time executive at Monmouth Park, has been named the president and general manager of the non-profit entity the Maryland Jockey Club Inc. that is set to take control of Maryland's two major Thoroughbred tracks starting Jan. 1. The announcement of his hiring was made by the Maryland Thoroughbred Racetrack Authority (MTRA), a non-profit group modeled after the New York Racing Association, which operates racing at Aqueduct, Belmont and Saratoga. The Maryland tracks were transferred to the MTRA by The Stronach Group, which donated them to the state after years of operating at a loss.

His duties in Maryland will include overseeing the rebuild of Pimlico, made possible by a $400 million investment in the facility approved by the Maryland General Assembly and Gov. Wes Moore. Once Pimlico has been rebuilt, racing will cease at Laurel.

Knauf, 51, served as Vice President of Business Development at Monmouth Park and is a graduate of Tufts University and the University of Arizona's racetrack industry program.

Knauf sat down recently with the TDN to discuss his role at the Maryland tracks and his vision for the future.

TDN: Maryland racing has a lot of problems and challenges that need to be overcome going forward. But that also means you have the chance to be at the forefront of a renaissance in Maryland. How exciting is that?

BK: I am incredibly excited. For a racetrack operator to be able to build a racetrack or to be involved with building a new racetrack at Pimlico is incredible. It's a once-in-a-lifetime experience. Maryland racing has such great history. I grew up in upstate New York but I paid attention to Maryland racing and the Preakness was something I always paid attention to. I loved the race and I loved the history. Managing a Triple Crown race is a dream come true, as well. Everything combined made this an incredible opportunity that I could not turn down.

TDN: One of the biggest changes going forward is that the Maryland tracks will not go head-to-head with Colonial Downs when that track is running. Was it difficult to get your horsemen to agree to that?

BK: The horsemen here have been great. Some of those talks about taking off when Colonial is running started before I got here. Everybody is really on board with making the circuit work for everyone. The horsemen are completely in sync with us when it comes to reducing days and finding what the right amount of days is. Every year we are going to learn something. The horsemen are aligned with us. It's something I am familiar with from working at Monmouth because the horsemen there leased the racetrack. When we decided we had to reduce days it was natural to look at that July, August period because that's when Colonial ramps up and they wanted to run more days. The conversation between their horsemen and our horsemen was open and productive. I think this will be a great thing for the industry.

TDN: The Stronach Group cut purses going into 2024. Can you maintain the current purse levels or will further cuts take place?

BK: We will maintain them to start. Hopefully, we will turn around the wagering trend that has been happening in Maryland. We're going to do some things differently. We're going to do some marketing things differently. Stronach had three tracks and they went at it from a corporate standpoint. We will be more focused on on-site attendance. We will be trying to get people to come out to the track. We will look at what we can offer from a wagering standpoint. An example might be to focus on our 12 percent Pick 5 takeout. I think that's something that's been overshadowed but it is great for the bettors. I think our marketing plan moving forward will reflect that. Hopefully, we can turn things around and increase purses. But the purses starting the new year will be very comparable to what they were in 2024.

TDN: Clearly The Stronach Group was losing money operating these racetracks, otherwise they wouldn't have wanted to get out. Since the new entity is a non-profit there should be less pressure to turn a profit. That said, no one wants to lose money. How do make these racetracks profitable?

BK: There are a lot of changes operationally that we will look at. One, there have been two tracks and we will be going to one.  That's a big plus. We will consolidate to one operation. We'll be at Laurel for the next two years and then in 2027 we will swing over to Pimlico and have just one racetrack. Albeit, we will also be adding a training center in that time frame. I think the consolidation will certainly help us to control costs. When you are losing money and you want to turn it around, that's not something that can be done immediately. You start with the little things. At Monmouth we were constantly working on new ways to generate revenue. You can only control costs so much. You have to run racing and be cognizant of track safety. That's not an area where we would ever cut corners. The answer then is to grow revenue. Whether it's sports wagering, an ADW platform, fixed odds, all these ancillary items can add up to additional revenue. That's how you do it, you claw your way back.

TDN: Next to Kentucky, Maryland might be the most passionate state in the country when it comes to its love of horses and racing. Have you sensed that, how important horse racing is to the general populous of the state?

BK: Absolutely. One of the things I will never forget is after I got the job and made my first road trip to Maryland I had to stop at one of the rest stops. As soon as I walked in I saw on the wall a huge mural of Thoroughbreds. The only other one they had was of a crab. Crabs and horses. That really hit home, that this is a horse state. Now that I have been here a couple of months I have had conversations not just with the horsemen but with the breeders. I am thoroughly impressed by how much passion there is in this state for the horse. You can feel it. There is a great history here. There is nobody in this state that doesn't want racing to succeed. It feels great because I know there aren't a lot of states out there that show the same sentiment.  As we hopefully turn the racing around we hope that will spur on all the other components of the industry, including the breeding industry. We're going to have a new training center and that might attract new outfits into the state. I think the next two or three years will mark a reinvigoration of racing in this state.

TDN: You don't have slots or a casino, but at the same time the casino industry contributes to the purse account. The Stronach Group let the horsemen know they needed help and were hoping to get a slice of the casino revenue for themselves. Where do things stand with that? As the new operators, will you be looking to get some of that casino money?

BK: No. We're not going to get any of the slot money. That is earmarked just for purses. In the bill, the horseman will have certain obligations after 2027 if the non-profit cannot remain profitable. If we show a deficit the horsemen will have to assist us with that deficit.

TDN: The spacing of the Preakness has been a hot button issue for years. The Stronach Group came out publicly to express its desire to have more spacing between the Kentucky Derby and the Preakness. Fortunately or unfortunately, that never went anywhere. Will the new Maryland Jockey Club campaign for there to be more time between the Triple Crown races?

BK: I haven't had any conversations on this subject yet. When I was at Monmouth, I certainly heard a lot of chatter about the spacing of the races. We have not had any discussions concerning the spacing of the races. I am sure we will at some point. But I have no idea where that will go.

TDN: What changes can we expect when it comes to the wagering menu?

BK: Looking at their wagering menu since I've been here I think it's pretty solid. They have rolling multi-race wagers, which I think is important. I love the 12 percent Pick 5. That was one of my favorite bets at Monmouth and we made it a key focus. For me, I love those type of bets because once you've handicapped five races you are more prone to bet on the races individually.  Maybe down the line and when I have a better feel for things, we might look at guaranteed pools on certain days. I mentioned fixed odds. I think we will look at implementing fixed odds wagering here. I am very familiar with it from my time at Monmouth. While it didn't really take off as of yet at Monmouth that has been because there has not been enough content as there could be in terms of tracks they can take. The players at Monmouth who were betting it loved the fact that they had the opportunity to lock in their prices and their bets weren't susceptible to any late odds drops.

TDN: You had a long run at Monmouth, one of the nicest tracks in the country. How bittersweet was it to have to leave there?

BK: It really is. Great reflection was due because I started there at ground zero as a marketing assistant 26 years ago. I was so lucky to have such great people to learn from, starting with marketing. I worked with Bobby Kulina for a long time and also for Dennis Drazin and Bill Anderson. I had the primary responsibility of running the Breeders' Cup in 2007. A lot of memories have come flooding back. At the same time, I was extremely confident that this was the right move at the right time. As I learned more about what is going to happen here this just wasn't something I could turn down. Monmouth will always hold a special place in my heart. Now that we're not running in July and August I can hopefully get down there some next summer.

TDN: I would imagine some people currently working at Laurel and Pimlico are nervous about their futures because a new management team is coming in. Do you anticipate a lot of personnel changes?

BK: We have actually carried over everybody from the existing Maryland Jockey Club over to 2025. We are going to roll with that. I am fortunate that the executive staff that I am working with here has many, many years of experience and are well respected around the industry. I didn't know any of them prior to getting here but I feel that since we all lived at racetracks all of our professional lives the transition has gone incredibly well. They've been unbelievable to work with. I feel right at home and I know there is a great team here. We will reshape the ideas of the new Maryland Jockey Club. Sometimes, there may have been different policies under the old administration. We will have a little more flexibility to try things out.

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