Harness Racing Victoria has announced additional cost saving measures, as it attempts to recover its ailing financial situation.
Announced on October 1, the new round of measures, which include a reduction in base prize money allocations and a scaling back of the Vicbred first win and breeder bonus schemes, are set to come into effect from January 1, 2025.
In May, HRV redistributed race meetings for the 2024-25 season, increasing frequency at larger race facilities like Shepparton and Bendigo, and cutting dates at regional clubs, including Echuca Harness Racing Club.
Echuca had its regular 12 meets cut down to six for this season.
Highlighted among the changes was a reduction of prize money in the lowest band of competition, with base prize awards to be reduced from $4500 per race to $4000.
A significant portion of races held at Echuca are at this base level. Seven of the eight races at the club’s September meet had prize money of $4700 or less.
“It's harder for everyone in the game,” Echuca club president Shane Gloury said.
“It probably just means that there will be a little less stake money on offer at our remaining meetings throughout the year which is not great but unfortunately that’s just the world that we operate in.”
Harness Racing Victoria makes a base stake contribution to a race’s prize money, with the host club able to supplement that amount if they wish.
“We understand that cuts need to be made but we think that they’ve cut too strong at the bottom end of the spectrum and that they need to cut more at the higher end,” Gloury said.
“We think that some of the feature races (stakes) can be cut rather than the base stake races and bonuses.”
As part of this round of cuts, HRV also announced $1 million in cuts across 46 feature races.
Also included in the cuts were reductions to the Vicbred first win bonus for Victorian-bred horses and the removal of breeders bonuses altogether.
Previously on a three-tier system that could award as much as $12,000 to the breeder of a horse’s maiden win, the Vicbred system has now been standardised to a flat $5000 for three-year-olds and $3000 for four-year-olds.
“It probably doesn’t affect us as a racing club in the immediate term (but), there's a big concern that we have from the wider industry point of view,” Gloury said.
“If stake money is reducing and Vicbred bonuses and breeder bonuses are reducing as HRV are proposing, the returns out there for owners, trainers and breeders are less.
“That concerns us in four or five years’ time where the industry will be looking.”
HRV CEO Matt Isaacs said the cuts to prize money were unavoidable after the body had already made viable operational cuts.
“Our strategy has been to make operational cuts first, which we have done, and gradually stage any prize money impacts,” he said.
“During consultation across the past 12 months, the participants and industry stakeholders have been clear — they have asked we move swiftly to ensure harness racing in Victoria’s long-term sustainability.”
Echuca held its first meeting of the new calendar on September 22, with no further meets until the club’s flagship New Year’s Day Cup on January 1.
“(The September) meeting was really well supported by trainers and drivers,” Gloury said.
“We had trainers coming from as far afield as Geelong and Melbourne in order to race.
“We’ve been used to racing once a month and in the first six months (of the season) we only have one race meeting so that's probably more what we're noticing at the club is a long time between race meetings which is a little bit different.
“We are certainly looking forward to our cup meeting (on January 1) and then we’ve got five meetings from January through to June so that will be more like what we normally do.
“We’re hoping that we get a couple of meetings back next year but that will remain to be seen.”