Racing is still feeling the euphoria from American Pharoah's sweep of the Triple Crown on Saturday. There's no reason not to enjoy the moment. Nonetheless, Pharoah's time in the limelight will be short. Even if he remains healthy and continues to sweep all before him, the chances are that the 2015 Breeders' Cup Classic will be his swan song. After that, he will be off to stud and racing will be dealing with the same problems it had before.
As magnificent as American Pharoah is, he can't fix a fragmented leadership that still struggles to develop a coherent nationwide policy regarding medication use. He can't fix track owners whose failure to market their product to new customers and to take care of existing customers is cutting into fan base. He can't fix high-profile owners (not just his own) who justly or unjustly attract negative public opinion for perceived lack of integrity, questionable business practices or shady associations. And he can't fix the animal welfare issues that pop up every time a horse breaks down or is perceived as being mistreated in some way.
All of these problems are not going away. If anything, the need for action is even greater following American Pharoah's sweep, so that new fans and potential owners attracted to the sport by his excellence are not almost immediately turned off and lost. There are no quick fixes to any of these issues, but they must be addressed and addressed consistently and persistently, or racing may lose more than it gains from the glow it is enjoying now.
As magnificent as American Pharoah is, he can't fix a fragmented leadership that still struggles to develop a coherent nationwide policy regarding medication use. He can't fix track owners whose failure to market their product to new customers and to take care of existing customers is cutting into fan base. He can't fix high-profile owners (not just his own) who justly or unjustly attract negative public opinion for perceived lack of integrity, questionable business practices or shady associations. And he can't fix the animal welfare issues that pop up every time a horse breaks down or is perceived as being mistreated in some way.
All of these problems are not going away. If anything, the need for action is even greater following American Pharoah's sweep, so that new fans and potential owners attracted to the sport by his excellence are not almost immediately turned off and lost. There are no quick fixes to any of these issues, but they must be addressed and addressed consistently and persistently, or racing may lose more than it gains from the glow it is enjoying now.
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