Oaklawn's place on the national racing map is secure through 2031, with the Hot Springs, Arkansas, track and the New York Racing Association agreeing to a five-year extension that keeps America's Day at the Races on FOX Sports as Oaklawn's television home. The renewed arrangement arrives as Oaklawn prepares for its earliest opening day in track history and an ambitious stakes program. NYRA's announcement confirmed the extension and its expanded coverage plans.
The next Oaklawn television season begins Friday, Nov. 27, with daily on-site coverage planned from the historic oval. NYRA and FOX Sports will increase hours around the meet's key occasions, including Opening Weekend, Smarty Jones Day, Southwest and Rebel weekends, Arkansas Derby Day, and the Apple Blossom and Oaklawn Handicap programs. For a track whose winter and spring calendar routinely attracts nationally significant 3-year-olds and older-class horses, that schedule gives the broadcast team a steady progression of races rather than a single marquee afternoon.
Oaklawn President Louis A. Cella said the partnership helps showcase the track's racing, stakes program and destination appeal to a national audience. FOX Corporation executive Michael Mulvihill pointed to Oaklawn's stakes quality, crowds and setting, while NYRA Chief Revenue Officer Tony Allevato credited Oaklawn and other partners with helping expand the America's Day at the Races platform. Those comments frame the deal as more than a rights renewal: it is part of FOX Sports' effort to make the program a year-round national shop window for major American racing.
The timing is significant. Oaklawn's Holiday Season starts Nov. 27 and runs through Jan. 10, followed by a short break before the Classic Season opens Jan. 22 and continues through May 1. The track is projecting approximately $60 million in purses, with a record 61 stakes worth $18.79 million. The headline races include the $1.5 million Arkansas Derby, the $1.5 million Apple Blossom Handicap, the $1.5 million Oaklawn Handicap, the $1.25 million Rebel Stakes and the $1 million Fantasy Stakes, according to the NYRA release.
That calendar gives the renewed broadcast relationship a compelling racing narrative. The Rebel and Arkansas Derby can help identify the Southwest's leading Kentucky Derby candidates, while the Apple Blossom and Oaklawn Handicap bring older-horse depth into the national picture. Expanded coverage should also give handicappers more opportunity to evaluate how Oaklawn's racing surface, pace patterns and weather-affected conditions are influencing form before the biggest betting days arrive.
The partnership also links the two venues commercially. NYRA and Oaklawn plan to offer a Cross-Country Pick 5 on most days when both tracks have live racing, creating a wagering bridge between Oaklawn's winter stakes circuit and NYRA's broader television operation. With Oaklawn retaining its national platform through 2031, the practical test will be whether increased exposure converts the track's strong purses, major events and on-site atmosphere into sustained interest from viewers and bettors well beyond Arkansas Derby weekend.