Horse racing in the Philippines

At that time, racehorses were bred from the German, Persian, and Israeli lineages of the Classical period in Philippine history, 900–1521.

[1] The MJC was the first racing club established in Southeast Asia, with 100 founding partners from the "prominent and affluent families"[citation needed] of the time period, including Spaniards, Filipinos, and English.

[2] Because the MJC was established as a social and recreation club, from 1867 through the 1870s only "fun runs" without betting were held annually, during April or May.

[2] The horseracing activities of the MJC were suspended during the 1896 Philippine Revolution, a conflict between Spanish soldiers and Filipino revolutionaries.

[1] The Gran Copa trophy was sent by the MJC to the Shanghai Bank in Hong Kong for safekeeping, and was only returned in 1937, after 38 years.

[2] Established by Filipino and American businessmen,[2] the Philippine Racing Club (PRC) was also organized for the purpose of using horse breeds of "superior quality" for horseracing.

In 1965, the National Stud Farm was created, through former Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos's approval of Republic Act No.

[1] During the 1960s, the Philippines became a member of the Asian Racing Conference (ARC), which focused on how further to improve horseracing in the region.

[Note 2][2] In 1972, both the MJCI and the PRC were given franchises to "construct, operate and maintain their own racetracks for a period of 25 years".

PHILRACOM was given the responsibility to promote and administer the development of horseracing in the Philippines as "a sport and a source of revenue and employment".

[1] The PHILRACOM was established through the efforts of the Metropolitan Association of Race Horse Owners (MARHO), an organization formed when a shortage in the supply of horsefeed, such as oats, occurred.

[2] On March 20, 1974, the two entities sharing authority over horseracing were the Philippine Racing Commission and the Games and Amusements Board (GAB).

This lowering of tax rates happened through the efforts of MARHO, which was headed at the time by Federico "Eric" Moreno, a Philippine justice.

[2] In 1992, a program to monitor Equine Infectious Anemia (EIA) was initiated by the National Stud Farm for all breeding stock.

In 1995, the Blood Typing and Parentage Validation Program was also adopted by the NSF for horses that were under contract with the Royal Western India Turf Club, Inc. (RWITC).

296 was signed by Philippine President Joseph Estrada to integrate the "personnel, programs and resources" of the National Stud Farm with other units and agencies managed by the Department of Agriculture.

Also in 2003, the offices and racetrack of the MJCI were transferred to Carmona, Cavite at the San Lazaro Leisure Park (SLLP),[1] a 77-hectare (190-acre) complex.

[2] Also in 2005, monitoring and eradication program for Equine Infectious Anemia (EIA) was made mandatory by PHILRACOM for all racehorses.

Identification "passports" were also issued for all racehorses, including pedigrees, vaccination, laboratory test results, and other required information.

[1] On December 8, 2006, the San Lazaro Leisure Park Turf Club of the MJCI became the first "racino"[Note 3] in Asia.

[2] In 2008, the offices and Santa Ana racetrack of PRCI were transferred from Makati to the newly built Saddle and Clubs Leisure Park in Naic, Cavite.

In November 2018, MMTCI wrote Philracom that they were considering suspending operations for the first quarter of 2019, citing financial losses among other reasons.

In August 2022, Manila Jockey Club and the San Lazaro Leisure Park officially shut down its 155-year-old horse racing operations with the last races under its banners in October, disclosing the two "would focus on real estate ventures while leasing existing properties.

"[11] The Philippine Racing Club-Saddle and Clubs Leisure Park also announced that "it will drop its horseracing business in November as it focuses on real estate development"[12] Both the PRCI and MJCI begun the transition period to new operators to continue the traditions they started.

Beginning November, 2022, given these circumstances, Metro Manila Turf Club took on a de facto monopoly mode on horse races and race betting, pending the arrival of the new competitors operating in Cavite and Batangas, one of them being Hapi Jockey Club, Inc. of The Horsemen's Track, which is constructing a new race track in Padre Garcia, Batangas, giving the province two top quality tracks and breaking the long hold Metroturf had on the province.

Manila Jockey Club leased its horse racing facilities in Carmona, Cavite to HJCI as it began operations that year.

[13] During the running of the fourth race at Metro Turf Club in Malvar, Batangas on January 10, 2024, 46-year-old jockey Francisco “Kiko” A. Tuazon's (of Barangay 331, Manila) left stirrup of his horse No.

5 named "Wild Eagle" owned by James Rabano suddenly broke, caused him to lose his footing, and fell on the race track at 6:48 p.m from his horse.

Suffering from a concussion, he was taken to Daniel Mercado Medical Center in Tanauan, Batangas where he was declared dead by Dr. Benjamin Macatangay.

[14][15] Philippine Racing Commission chairman Aurelio “Reli” P. De Leon Aurelio de Leon paid tribute to the fallen jockey in a statement: "The Commission, along with the entire horse racing community, deeply mourns the untimely passing of jockey Francisco 'Kiko' Tuazon.