The "Race to the National Horseplayers Championship (NHC)," a series of 25 free handicapping contests exclusively for subscribers of Race Lens, Equibase's interactive past performance product, concluded on February 21 with the end-of-season qualifier "Race Lens Final 50" awarding the top two finishers qualifying berths to the 2026 National Horseplayers Championship in Las Vegas from March 13-15, 2026. Now in its second season, the Race to the NHC is hosted by Equibase, the industry's official database for racing, and the National Thoroughbred Racing Association (NTRA), founder and operator of the NHC.
Beginning last summer and running through mid-February, the top two contestants from each weekly contest qualified for the Race Lens Final 50 with the top two finishers - Edward Enborg and Mark McGuire - earning not only a qualifying berth to the NHC next month, but also a four-night stay at the Horseshoe Las Vegas and a $500 travel voucher, courtesy of Race Lens. The third through seventh finishers won entries into the Last Chance / First Chance contest to be held prior to the NHC, also at the Horseshoe Casino in Las Vegas. All contests were hosted on Horseplayers.com, the official online qualifying site of the NHC and Breeders' Cup Betting Challenge.
"Handicappers are the backbone of our sport, and giving horseplayers multiple opportunities to earn a berth to the most prestigious tournament in the country is something we are excited to provide," said Equibase President and COO Kyle McDoniel. "We congratulate our two winners and wish all of our Race Lens customers, the highest finisher of which will automatically earn a spot in NHC 2027, the best of luck."
The weekly Race to the NHC contests were free for Race Lens customers who could play each week with a current monthly, quarterly, or annual Race Lens subscription. Each contest averaged 130 players with a total of 638 people having played throughout the series.
"The NTRA is always looking to provide horseplayers with additional avenues to qualify for the NHC, which is no easy task," said NTRA President and CEO Tom Rooney. "Two of our recent past champions have been Race Lens users, so our partnership has been a win-win."
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