Presque Isle Downs

In terms of racing history, there’s not much to know about the racetrack in Summit County, Pennsylvania, and for good reason: As of February 28^th, 2021, Presque Isle Racetrack and Casino will have celebrated its 14^th birthday.

Fortunately for the racing office, horsemen have had little difficulty finding their way to the new racetrack off Interstate 90 as one approaches the city of Erie.

Before his recent retirement, Hall of Famer Jonathan Sheppard found his way to Presque Isle and, as one would expect, won at a high percentage. So did prolific ship-in trainer Mike Trombetta, who wins at 25% when he comes to town.

For the Lance Stokes outfit, it’s the same story. And when horsewoman Elizabeth Merryman ships north and west from Maryland, horseplayers had better take note.

If volume is the measure, bettors can count on several regulars: Joseph R. Martin has been nothing short of dominant--and does so with numbers. The same can be said of Tim Girten, who is a racing office’s best friend, one with a win percentage to match.

Wherever Ron Potts shows up, he wins, and Presque Isle has been no exception. Further, note that Gerald E. Brooks dependably wins his share, as does Tim Hamm, Shelly R. Radosevich and Eddie Rojas.

When Tampa Bay Downs shutters for the season, many in their jockey colony make the drive north to the Commonwealth. Among them, the patient, strong-finisher Pablo Morales rates to thrive on Presque Isle’s stamina-testing surface and does so perennially.

Willie Martinez is a force, too, as are veterans Scott Spieth and Mario Pino. Huber Villa-Gomez, Addiel Ayala, Walber Alencar, Israel Rodriguez, Harry Hernandez and Eddie Dominguez ensure that the races are highly competitive.

All compete over a synthetic surface, Tapeta Footings, that plays extremely honest, atmospherics notwithstanding, and favors no particular running style.

The All-Weather track is a one-mile oval with two chutes. The stretch run is 1,062 feet and the property stands on 272 acres hard by the Interstate.

The cliché that synthetic tracks act like turf is a good assessment of the dynamics in play at Presque Isle, and the surface is such that when horses leave there, they can win on a conventional surface anywhere, dirt or turf.

The track was conceived by developer MTR Gaming Group. Ground was broken in the fall of 2005 and the track opened in the winter of 2007. It grew quickly and six months later its simulcast facility was moved from its original location into the current Perry Highway address.

MTR Gaming later sold the property to Eldorado Resorts, which in turn sold it to Churchill Downs Inc. in 2019 for nearly $179 million.

The casino portion contains 1,600 slot machines, table games and poker rooms. Slots revenue is split between the owner/operator and the Commonwealth, 45% to 55%, respectively.

Slots revenue helps with property tax relief, spurs economic development, tourism, and the racing industry. Revenue from table games and poker rooms is ceded to local government.

Presque Isle’s current success began on February 6^th, 2019 when the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board approved a sports betting license for the Racino. BetAmerica self-betting kiosks began operating on August 9^th, 2019 and by December 19 launched an online sportsbook.

Presque Isle offers one graded stakes, the Grade 2 Presque Isle Downs Masters, in addition to six listed stakes, the two most prominent being the Presque Isle Mile and the Tom Ridge Stakes.