Northfield, OH — MGM Northfield Park management is excited to announce that Kenny Livengood will serve as the track’s next announcer, beginning Saturday (June 3).

Livengood replaces longtime announcer Ayers Ratliff who stepped aside at the end of 2022.

Kenny Livengood joins MGM Northfield Park after serving as the backup announcer to Mike Sardella at Saratoga Casino Hotel. Jessica Hallett photo.

The 24-year-old Livengood joins MGM Northfield Park after serving as the backup announcer to Mike Sardella at Saratoga Casino Hotel.

“I’m excited that I can continue to live my dream at MGM Northfield Park; the team has been welcoming and I am honored to work alongside them,” said Livengood. “It was a tough decision to move away from home for the first time in my life for an extended period of time. However, life is about taking risks and never giving up on your dreams.”

Calling his first professional horse race at Arapahoe Park in 2016, Livengood knew he wanted to be an announcer from a young age.

“I started calling Yankees baseball games on the phone to my grandmother when I was in middle school,” said Livengood. “That turned into calling horse races into the phone, and when I was in eighth grade, I called a full race as part of my English class project.”

Spending two summers at Chippewa Downs in North Dakota in 2017 and 2018, Livengood turned his attention to harness racing in his home state of New York in 2018. After calling races at several different venues, Livengood caught the eye of Sardella in 2018 when he called his first race over the storied oval. He would eventually be installed as the permanent backup, replacing ‘Bullet’ Bob Meyer.

“Kenny started at Saratoga, eager to learn the ins and outs of announcing. He had the passion, but admittedly, he was more knowledgeable on the Thoroughbred end than he was in harness racing,” said Sardella. “I suggested that he study the game, practice for a while, and come back ready to be my backup. He took on the task head-on and became a student of the game; he has come a long way.”

“I can’t thank Mike (Sardella) enough for teaching me the harness game and giving me the opportunities he did at Saratoga,” said Livengood.

Livengood is an avid handicapper in his spare time, participating as a finalist in the NTRA National Horseplayer Championship in 2021 and 2023. He is also an avid bowler with 12 perfect games to his credit.

“We took our time to find the right person for the job, and we believe Kenny is ready for the challenge. He already calls a great race, and I’m sure he’ll get even better as he gets additional experience under his belt,” said MGM Northfield Director of Racing Dave Bianconi. “There have only been three full-time announcers in Northfield’s nearly 70-year history (Andy Cunningham, Greg Young, and Ayers Ratliff), so Kenny has big shoes to fill.”

MGM Northfield Park management would like to thank the many talented announcers that have filled the role over the past couple of months while the search for the next announcer took place.

“I’d also like to thank interim announcers Gabe Prewitt and Kevin Decker, along with our own Michael Carter, who filled in admirably over the past few months during our announcer search,” said Bianconi.