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What is Jungle Gorilla?
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.
What is Jungle Gorilla?
Two years later, Buffett again targeted the “gamblification” of financial markets in his annual shareholder letter.
“Markets now exhibit far more casino-like behavior than they did when I was young. The casino now resides in many homes and daily tempts the occupants,” Buffett wrote, noting that extreme volatility makes identifying sound, long-term investments vastly more difficult.
“One fact of financial life should never be forgotten. Wall Street–to use the term in its figurative sense–would like its customers to make money, but what truly causes its denizens’ juices to flow is feverish activity. At such times, whatever foolishness can be marketed will be vigorously marketed–not by everyone but always by someone,” Buffett warned.
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“We have executed one of the largest capability building projects in the company’s history and invested in marketing, customer-acquisition and market share gains in a very intentional way,” Bengtsson said. “We are encouraged that, even with continued investment in the business, adjusted EBITDA growth has accelerated relative to the first half of 2025.”
The company is placing an increased focus on efficiency and margins, with plans for a “lower-cost, more centralised operating model” with the profitability of Sun International’s underperforming assets in mind.
A formal consultation process relating to Section 189A of South Africa’s Labour Relations Act has commenced. THis governs large-scale retrenchments by companies with over 50 employees.
