ExtremeRavens Posted August 30 Posted August 30 Randall Lane watched this year’s Preakness with Lamar Jackson. He saw first-hand how Baltimore responded to Jackson’s magnetic presence, with children and adults alike flocking to the star quarterback for photos and autographs. Lane knew then Jackson would make an ideal partner for his vision. Lane, a lifelong horse racing fan and co-founder of the National Thoroughbred League, was looking to expand his startup after its inaugural season and identified Maryland as a possibility. All he needed was a partner to connect a new team with the community. When horse racing fans at Pimlico Race Course this May were enamored with Jackson, Lane knew the Ravens’ signal caller was just what he needed. “We saw how Baltimore reacts to Lamar Jackson,” Lane told The Baltimore Sun. “He’s an electric guy.” The NTL’s second season begins Saturday in Nashville with four new teams, including the Maryland Colts. Lane aims to revolutionize the country’s oldest spectator sport by introducing a team element, which he hopes will make the sport easier to follow for fans and drive popularity. Partnering with Jackson could be critical. “You can’t have a major horse racing league without being in Maryland,” Lane said. The National Thoroughbred League began competition last season with six clubs and has expanded to 10 after a successful first year. The season consists of four events, beginning in Nashville on Saturday followed by Philadelphia in October and the league championship in Phoenix in December. Each event features five races, in which the 10 teams will deploy a different horse for each race with the overall winner being decided by a point system. Over $3 million in purses will be awarded across the three events, according to the NTL’s website. Along with Jackson, who became a part-owner of the expansion Maryland Colts, team owners and investors in the league include country music singer Tanya Tucker, basketball Hall of Famer Julius Erving, rapper Rick Ross and New York Giants defensive lineman Kayvon Thibodeaux. “I am truly excited to be a part of this great opportunity,” Jackson said in a release. “The core values of excellence, teamwork, community, and leadership will help push the program beyond our expectations. I believe through our efforts and determination more opportunities will be opened for the youth of the state of Maryland. We look forward to seeing the success of such a great vision become the reality.” Lane, a New York native, is the grandson of a professional horse racing gambler, currently the chief content officer at Forbes and grew up at racetracks and stables around the country. Why thoroughbred racing wasn’t more popular was a question that perplexed him and one he sought an answer to. He settled on the lack of a team element. Fans of football, baseball and basketball teams connect with their squads and players because of the continuity, Lane said, which the traditional structure of horse racing lacks. “Thoroughbred racing is the only sport where the superstars get retired as soon as they become famous,” he said. “We’re saying, ‘Let’s have teams that you can root for so that we can develop fans. Let’s have horses that run for those teams repeatedly so you get to know the players.’ We’re trying to modernize a lot of the thoroughbred experience. “We’re creating a true sporting event, and then we’re creating a true party weekend around it,” Lane continued. “Party, fashion, drinks. It’s like the Preakness.” Lane and the NTL are confident in their revolutionary team-based model, but also know connecting with their 10 cities is critical to continued growth. The league doesn’t aim to rival traditional horse racing events, but rather partner with them in a mutually beneficial manner, Lane said. Preserving that history was important to Jackson, too. The two-time NFL Most Valuable Player and his mother, Felicia Jones, met with Lane and other NTL officials during this year’s Preakness to discuss a plan for what their potential partnership could look like. Highlighting Baltimore’s rich horse racing culture was a requirement for Jackson, Lane said. The 27-year-old Ravens star is a horse racing fan, but also served as a voice in those meetings for how the league could amplify the surrounding community. How do children around Pimlico benefit and how can the league create local jobs, Jackson asked. With those initiatives in mind, the league is bringing horse racing — with a team twist — to one of the staples of the sport around the world. “You’ll get to know the players on your team. You’ll root for your local team,” Lane said. “That’s why local ownership is very important to us. That’s why Lamar is key to this. Because we want to make sure it’s a true Baltimore team, a true Maryland team.” View the full article Quote
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