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How to play Mystic Staxx
Closing of the transaction is targeted for the first quarter of 2027.
Following closing, Merkur intends to file the mandatory tender offer with the AMF in the first half of 2027, with the offer launch contingent on the regulator’s clearance.
The transaction remains subject to customary closing conditions, including receipt of all necessary regulatory approvals.
How to play Mystic Staxx
The new Belmont is significantly different than the sprawling venue it replaced. The former 1.25 million-square-foot grandstand, which had become vastly oversized for the contemporary racing crowd, was demolished to make way for a much smaller, modern facility with a focus on hospitality and premium seating.
Friday’s opening was deliberately capped at 6,000 spectators while construction continues. Only the first two levels of the new five-story grandstand are currently open, with the remaining sections scheduled for completion ahead of next year’s meet.
The redevelopment was financed by a $455 million loan from New York State, approved in 2023. State officials have projected the project will generate $155 million in annual economic activity once fully operational, along with around $10 million annually in state and local tax revenue.
How to play Mystic Staxx
In June, Grasso wrote an opinion piece in the Chicago Tribune criticizing what he described as media coverage that unfairly associates Italian Americans with organized crime. However, he did not directly name Rovito in the piece.
“I’ve sadly watched some members of the Chicago news media stigmatize Italian Americans as Outfit members or mafia operatives whenever it serves to embellish a story,” Grasso wrote.
“The Outfit still sells, pathetically. It’s time that it stops. Or as I like to say: Basta. Enough.”
