Churchill Downs, the largest and most famous horse racetrack in the world and site of the Kentucky Derby, is instituting a new "safety initiative" after a rash of thoroughbred deaths on the track, effective immediately.
The new protocols were announced on Thursday after a meeting between track officials and horsemen from Churchill Downs and Trackside Training Center Louisville ... all aimed at preventing catastrophic injury on the dirt track.
Horses will now be limited to four starts during a rolling eight-week period ... limiting how often the animals are pushed to the max.