In the American horseracing landscape, Kentucky Downs holds a unique place. A turf-only venue situated near the town of Franklin, close to the Tennessee border, the track hosts just seven days of racing each year.

Fuelled by the benefits of an on-track casino, a feature of many racecourses in the States, the prize-money offered at Kentucky Downs is simply phenomenal, especially for victorious Kentucky-breds owing to the valuable premiums offered.

The purses available certainly caught the eye of Alex Cole, Racing Manager to owners Dr Jim and Fitri Hay. The Hays have horses all over the world, including Britain, where last month their gelding Khaadem recorded his second successive win in the Queen Elizabeth II Jubilee Stakes at Royal Ascot.

Khaadem took home £567,000 for his efforts in the Group 1 sprint, a superb pot by UK standards. By contrast, the same owners’ Ancient Rome – a stable companion of Khaadem’s at Charlie Hills’ Lambourn stable – pocketed £980,000 after taking the Grade 3 Mint Millions Stakes at Kentucky Downs in September.

Cole explains: “Ancient Rome was based in France with Andre Fabre when I noticed that he was a Kentucky-bred. Fabre couldn’t seem to get the best out of him for whatever reason, so he was brought over to Charlie. I told Charlie the plan [to target a race at Kentucky Downs] and unlike most plans in racing it worked out.

“Kentucky Downs has always been on my radar, mainly because it’s a track that really doesn’t suit American horses. It’s very undulating, they start uphill, there’s a slight camber and then they come downhill. The Americans are used to flat ovals.

“A big factor in Ancient Rome winning over there was Jamie Spencer. He didn’t panic at any stage – he knows how to ride tracks like Goodwood and Epsom. Jockeyship does play a big part.

“The premiums available for Kentucky-breds was very much part of the thought process. I won’t tell you how much it cost to get there, put it paid off.

“Ancient Rome is a War Front horse bred in Kentucky by Coolmore. I don’t think you could send a Kodiac or a Galileo as they wouldn’t enjoy the benefits of the state premiums.

“You need the right horse and Ancient Rome was the right horse; Group 1-placed at two and fourth in a French Guineas. He’s a solid Group 2/Group 3 horse that handles fast ground.”

The Hays received a signed guitar from country music star Tanya Tucker

Ancient Rome will head back across the Atlantic later this year and try to repeat his heroics, when he is likely to joined at Kentucky Downs by the Wesley Ward-trained juvenile Saturday Flirt, purchased by the Hays from her trainer and last seen finishing unplaced behind Shareholder in the Norfolk Stakes.

Not only are the prize funds impressive but the location and setting provide further reasons to race at Kentucky Downs.

“It’s a fantastic place about an hour outside Nashville,” says Cole. “And they don’t give out crappy trophies – the Hays received a signed guitar from country music star Tanya Tucker, which was pretty cool.

“What happened last year was wonderful, but to give the horse his due he also won a valuable handicap at Goodwood in his warm-up. There is prize-money at the good tracks in Britain. But you have to think outside the box.”

Rick Hammerle, Racing Secretary at Kentucky Downs, is looking forward to welcoming back Ancient Rome along with other European runners for this year’s racing season, slated to run from August 29 to September 11.

The track, which is owned by Ron Winchell and busines partner Marc Falcone, is “unique in the US” according to Hammerle.

He says: “We have dirt-only and synthetic-only meets, but this is the only one exclusively staged on turf.

“The layout of the racetrack is like nothing else in the States. It’s a mile and five-sixteenths; I’d describe the shape as like a lightbulb. There’s a big, wide turn and then they come down a long, almost quarter-mile stretch.

“There’s a casino on the property and in short, some of the money that comes from the casino goes into a fund, the Kentucky Thoroughbred Development Fund (KTDF), which is earmarked for purses and to improve the Kentucky-bred brand.

“If you only race for seven days each year, you can put up much bigger purses. It’s a destination for anyone with a good turf horse.”

Hammerle says the track’s owners are keen to preserve the special atmosphere at Kentucky Downs, which has proven so popular with racing professionals and the public alike.

“Ron and Marc took over six or seven years ago and they’ve taken it to the next level,” Hammerle says. “In a small town, Franklin Kentucky, it has that country fair-type atmosphere. People sit at picnic tables for the races while there’s only one indoor chalet that acts as a club house. That’s the beauty of it.

“It’s about 30 miles north of Nashville, which is where most people fly into. It’s the capital of country music and we encourage owners to explore Nashville and have some fun down there.

“We started to give away guitars as trophies for some of the bigger races – it’s been a big hit, as we ask country music stars to sign them. No tin cups here!”