Ruidoso Downs will increase overnight purses by 20 percent beginning June 11, the track announced Thursday. The move was made after Ruidoso experienced a 37 percent increase in handle over its opening weekend, compared to figures from 2019. 

"It was great to see so many racing fans come back to the track and enjoy live racing with us,” Tim Keithley, director of marketing, said i na press release from Ruidoso Downs. “Our attendance over the weekend was consistent with our pre-pandemic numbers, and our mutuel handle was up by nearly $1 million over Memorial Day weekend in 2019.  We are very excited about the rest of the summer season.”

Ruidoso handled $3.6 million over four days of racing that featured trials for the Grade 1 Ruidoso Futurity and Grade 1 Ruidoso Derby. The track handled $2.6 million on the corresponding dates in 2019.

An estimated 15,000 racing fans attended the Memorial Day weekend races, with a high of 4,700 ontrack Sunday, according to the release from Ruidoso. 

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