Turf Paradise in Phoenix, Ariz., will race in 2024, the track said in a brief statement issued late on Wednesday night, and the state’s horsemen’s group has extended a contract with the track that will allow simulcasting to continue until Nov. 12. The statement did not provide details other than to say “additional information will be forthcoming” about the live meet. The Arizona Department of Racing is scheduled to hold a meeting at 1 p.m. Eastern in which issues affecting Turf Paradise are expected to be discussed at length. Ten days ago, Turf Paradise owner Jerry Simms said that the horsemen’s contract would not be extended past its Sept. 30 expiration date and that Simms planned to close Turf Paradise as of that date, after a deal to sell the track fell through. The expiration of the contract would have meant the cessation of simulcasting throughout the state’s 37 OTBs, and it likely would have ended account-wagering operations in the state as well. :: Bet the races with a $250 First Deposit Match + $10 Free Bet and FREE Formulator PPs! Join DRF Bets. The announcement on Wednesday night followed a week of maneuverings in Arizona by horsemen, track owners, and several potential buyers who began to look at purchasing not only Turf Paradise, but also Arizona Downs, a shuttered track located in Prescott Valley, a 90-minute drive to the north. In Arizona, live-racing licensees control the year-round simulcasting network in the state, as well as the operation of third-party account-wagering operators. Those operations accrue revenue throughout the year to the track operator. Leroy Gessman, the executive director of the Arizona Horsemen’s Benevolent and Protective Association, said on Tuesday that Simms had told the horsemen he had lined up a new buyer for Turf Paradise. Gessman declined to reveal the buyer. Then, on Wednesday, according to officials with knowledge of the situation, horsemen met late in the afternoon to discuss whether to extend the Turf Paradise contract due to the buyer’s interest in the track. Due to the statement released on Wednesday night, it is apparent that the horsemen agreed to the extension, though Gessman did not return phone calls yesterday. The previous effort to buy Turf Paradise was being led by James Watson, a principal in the California real-estate development company CT Realty and a former commissioner of the California Horse Racing Board. Watson and his partners, which included Revolutionary Racing, a company that previously ran Colonial Downs in Virginia, dropped out after their lobbying efforts to get authorization for historical horse-racing machines failed.  :: Want to learn more about handicapping and wagering? Check out DRF's Handicapping 101 and Wagering 101 pages.