Rockingham starts off Tote sponsored Curragh race series The first of four exciting races in the Tote Curragh Race Series takes place next week when Tote begin a new three-year sponsorship of the Tote Rockingham Handicap at the Curragh. The race, a feature on Thursday June 27th, day one of the Dubai Duty Free Irish Derby Festival, is recognised as one of the top sprint handicaps in the Irish racing calendar. The Tote Curragh Race Series is comprised of four lucrative handicaps run throughout the season at the Curragh - the Tote Rockingham Handicap, the Tote Scurry Premier Handicap, the Tote Irish Cambridgeshire and the Tote Irish Cesarewitch. The prize-money for the four races this year is a combined E450,000, including a E25,000 boost for both the Tote Rockingham Handicap and the Tote Scurry Premier Handicap. Ross Kierans, General Manager of Tote Ireland, said: "While we have sponsored three of these four races previously, we are delighted to commit to them for another three years and contribute to the increased prize-money. "The redeveloped Curragh is a fabulous facility and we are proud to remain at the heart of its racing calendar with the Tote Curragh Race Series. "Sponsoring the first feature race at the Irish Derby Festival in the new Curragh is a great way to begin our renewed association." Evan Arkwright, Curragh Racecourse Racing Manager, added: "We are delighted to enhance our association with the Tote and look forward to staging four very competitive races with our objective to attract plenty of overseas trained challengers to compete against the home trained team to further boost their profile."
