The Wyoming Gaming Commission has approved Wyoming’s first mile-long horse racing track for 16 live race dates in 2025, as well as simulcasting and related activities. While the first racing season at Thunder Plains Park will feature temporary structures, the essential components, including barns, racing officials’ tower, video patrol towers, and spectator areas, will be in place.

The track, located 10 miles east of Cheyenne at Thunder Plains Park, will host its inaugural race day on Friday, August 1, 2025, with additional race days to follow on August 2, 3, 8-10, 15-17, 22-24, 29-31 and September 1. Dates are subject to change per the Wyoming Gaming Commission.

With its convenient location along I-80, the track is set to draw racing fans from neighboring states in the mountain west region, as well as local fans from Cheyenne and surrounding areas.

“As a fifth-generation Wyomingite, being able to bring this track to our state carries a lot of meaning,” said Ryan Clement, managing partner at Thunder Plains. “Thunder Plains sees an incredible opportunity to create a positive impact not only on the Wyoming horse racing industry but also the area’s economy, in terms of new job opportunities and tourism revenue.”

Through partnerships with elite industry veterans and horsemen, Thunder Plains looks forward to bringing high-quality, high-caliber racing to Laramie County.

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“We’ve established a strong partnership with 1/ST, North America’s preeminent Thoroughbred racing, entertainment and pari-mutuel wagering company,” said Clement. “They’ve set the standard for horse safety across the nation, and we’re looking forward to bringing that strong emphasis on safety and track protocols to Wyoming.”

Of the partnership with Thunder Plains, 1/ST TECHNOLOGY’s Senior Vice President Jeff True said he sees exciting opportunities ahead.

“1/ST has a long history of operating premier racetracks and premier racing events across the country. We are thrilled to be entering the Wyoming horse racing market together with our local Wyoming partners, and we look forward to lending our expertise to help grow Wyoming horse racing.”

For all simulcasting operations, 1/ST will leverage the expertise of its affiliates at Monarch Content Management, AmTote International, and PariMAX.

“Our racetrack will be operated with numerous horse safety and welfare protocols in place,” Clement said. “The track itself, being a mile long and eighty feet wide, dramatically improves horse and rider safety. Throughout track design and construction, we collaborated with Dennis Moore, a renowned track surface specialist, to ensure the safest, most high-quality racing surface.”

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Moore’s professional history includes designing and building world-class racetracks across the county, as well as consulting on track safety projects at racetracks across the country and around the world. Moore’s projects have included the racing surfaces at Santa Anita Park, Del Mar, Lone Star Park, Remington Park and in Dubai, among others.

Future plans at Thunder Plains Park include building a regional equestrian center and establishing a high-altitude horse training and breeding program.

BetMGM, a leading iGaming and sports betting operator and Authorized Gaming Operator of the NBA, has launched its first Original Bets Sweepstakes for the 2024 Emirates NBA Cup. From November 21-29, BetMGM customers who wager $10 or more on BetMGM’s proprietary NBA Cup Original Bets will have the chance to win the ultimate Las Vegas sports vacation. BetMGM will send one winner to Las Vegas for a five-night stay at MGM Grand, provide tickets to the semifinal and championship games and offer an on-court photo opportunity. The winner also will receive $2500 in BetMGM Rewards Points that can be redeemed for a variety of experiences at any MGM Resorts property (players must be considered active in order to keep their BetMGM Rewards Points from expiring based on Tier Status).

“With the Emirates NBA Cup championship returning to our backyard in Las Vegas, it is important for us to create an experience only possible through BetMGM. This promotion allows guests to explore NBA Original Bets and benefit from our unique connection to MGM Resorts destinations that are a short walk from T-Mobile Arena,” Matt Prevost, Chief Revenue Officer at BetMGM, said.

Participants can opt in to the Original Bets Sweepstakes from the home screen or promotions section of the BetMGM mobile app. Any Emirates NBA Cup Original Bet of $10 or more during the promotional period will count as a single entry into the sweepstakes for up to 25 entries (promotional offer not available in Nevada, New York, Ontario, or Puerto Rico).

BetMGM’s Original Bets are made possible through the integration of Angstrom, Entain’s sports modeling and analytics company. Angstrom’s differentiated play-by-play simulation-based pricing models allow BetMGM to provide an extensive list of basketball markets like both teams to score in the first minute and three 3-pointers scored in the first three minutes.

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The Original Bets Sweepstakes is one of many ways BetMGM customers can engage with the League throughout the 2024-25 NBA season. For the second year, BetMGM is offering its free-to-play Fast Break game. Once a day, users can log in and try to score a basket to win a reward. Rewards include parlay boost tokens, odds boost tokens, SGP boost tokens, bonus spins (in eligible casino states), and bonus bets (promotional offer not available in Nevada or Puerto Rico; bonus bets are non-withdrawable and expire in 24 hours).

21VIRAL has confirmed the integration of Bitblox’s unique crypto-price-based games into its platform. This distribution deal allows 21VIRAL access to popular games such as “3 in a Row,” “Up or Down?” and “Up or Down? Turbo.”

In these prediction games, players can guess whether the price of Bitcoin will rise or fall. The timing is particularly favourable, as the recent bull run in cryptocurrencies and heightened mainstream awareness following the US presidential election have contributed to their popularity.

Christoph Härtel, CEO of 21VIRAL, stated, “We are excited to onboard Bitblox Games to our GameConnector platform. These unique games, based on the crypto market, are highly entertaining and engaging, providing our operator partners with an innovative way to attract and retain players across Latin America.”

Brandt Page, CEO of Bitblox Games, added, “Working with the 21VIRAL team has been a pleasure, from our initial discussions to the contract exchange. The fast integration took less than four weeks, which is a significant advantage for any game studio like ours. Speed to market is crucial for optimal distribution of our crypto-prediction games.”

“The recent developments in the US have led to a surge in the crypto market, increasing the demand for our games within the iGaming ecosystem. As awareness of cryptocurrencies continues to grow in mainstream media, we look forward to collaborating with 21VIRAL and expanding our distribution in the Latin American market”.

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