They love their horse racing in Utah, of that there is no doubt. Considering that the sport has survived in the area for over 140 years without any form of wagering offered on Utah horse racing, they’d have to love the game to stay in the game.
Utah horse people are diehards, people say. They make a go of it every year without drawing any revenue from pari-mutuel wagering. There is some level of government funding that supports horse racing. The Utah Department of Agriculture and Food provides $90,000 for overnight purses Mostly, though in Utah horse racing, they survive by going door to door, garnering sponsorship money to pay for the costs of racing in the state.
Horse Racing History
A 2019 bill designed to give individual counties the right to decide whether they wanted to allow pari-mutuel wagering on horse racing in their area failed to get backing in state government circles.
Horse racing in the state of Utah dates back to the early 1880s. In those days, harness racing was the prominent form of horse racing. Today, quarter horse racing dominates the Utah landscape. Two tracks – Laurel Brown Racetrack in South Jordan and Weber Downs in Ogden – offer race dates. A third track, Dixie Downs in Hurricane, closed its doors in 1995.
One of the most famous Utah horse owners and trainers was Gene Fullmer. Fullmer, who died in 2015, reigned as world middleweight boxing champion in 1957 and again from 1959-62.
Prominent races in Utah include the $95,000 Beehive Futurity and the $88,268 Hadley-Giles Futurity.
Utah Online Horse Betting FAQs
Horse betting or any simulcast races is prohibited in Utah.
Yes, but horse racing venues in Utah are not permitted to accept bets.
Utah bans horse racing online providers of advance deposit wagering.