MassCap coming back to Suffolk Downs

The Massachusetts Handicap Horse Race, which put Suffolk Downs on the map when the local race track opened in 1935, will be run again in 2007 after a two-year hiatus.

The track's enthusiastic new owner, businessman and casino developer Richard Fields, said today that the 65th running of the MassCap will take place on Sept. 22 and carry a guaranteed purse of $500,000.

Fields, who is vowing to reinvigorate horse racing at the tired East Boston-Revere track, made the announcement this morning at the Four Seasons Boston Hotel.

"The MassCap ... provided the backdrop for legendary thoroughbreds like Seabiscuit and Cigar to make history," Fields said. "I believe great riders and horses will once again make history at Suffolk Downs."
(By Thomas C. Palmer Jr., Globe staff)