President of the Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association (TOBA) Howard Hamilton says the introduction of the ultra-rich Mouttet Mile must be used as a catalyst to attract new owners and breeders into the racing industry.

“I think we should learn from the experience of the Diamond Mile some years ago. What the Diamond Mile turned out to be was nothing more than a glorious event for the wannabes to come in their finery and pose and take pictures.

“If the Mouttet Mile was to develop itself into this, then we would have lost what we can do as a true value, in terms of what this race can be,” Hamilton said during the post-position draw for the Mouttet Mile and the Chairman’s Plate held at the ROK Hotel in Kingston on Monday, November 28, 2022.

Hamilton then suggested ways in which the racing industry can be improved.

“Now, how can we attract new breeders? How can we attract new owners? Follow the example of TOBA and the Betting, Gaming, and Lotteries Commission (BLGC), in terms of the two-year-old races we have sponsored. Pulled a particular portion of the purse for owners only, as they are the people who pay the bills. Increase the breeder’s bonus from nine per cent to 10 per cent, and that’s a small increase.

“But do something that will attract new owners, see what they can get out of racing, and also see what the breeders can do. We had over 43 commercial breeders in the 1990s, but now there are only six. That tells you something has gone seriously wrong with the racing industry, and we need to correct it if we want to keep on promoting races successfully in Jamaica,” Hamilton said.

Hamilton said that while “the chickens are coming home to roost”, the promoting company needs to act quickly and do something about improving the amount of racing stock for racing promotion because it is going to go down.

“We [TOBA and BGLC] introduced something so that horses that don’t pass through the sale ring have to pay a special premium to enter certain races. Our two-year-old-sponsored races, if [you don’t go through the sale], have to pay $75,000. Next year we are going to increase to about $150,000. Unless that sale is being supported by all breeders, then we are wasting time,” Hamilton said.

He continued: “For some three-year-old races, all horses that have gone through the sale can enter free, and those who don’t go through the sale will have to pay a premium to enter those races. Let’s try and do something to attract people into the breeding system and get it growing again as it used to be in the good old days.”