A total of 37 Thoroughbred Stakes with purses in excess of a record $4.65 million will be offered during the upcoming 2020 racing season at Indiana Grand Racing & Casino. The schedule is headed by the grade 3 $500,000-guaranteed Indiana Derby set for Saturday, July 11.
Indiana Derby Night will once again feature six total stakes leading up to the evening's premier event, the 26th running of the Grade III Indiana Derby. Purses for the evening will topple over the $1.1 million mark. In addition to the Derby, the Grade III $200,000-guaranteed Indiana Oaks will be featured, and the Jonathan B. Schuster Memorial will be held, named in honor of the former vice president and general manager at Indiana Grand who passed away in late 2019. The $100,000 Listed stakes race was formerly known as the Warrior Veterans and will be contested over the turf course at one and one-sixteenth miles.
Indiana's richest turf races, the $200,000 Caesars Stakes (Listed) will be featured Wednesday, Sept. 9 and will be joined by the $200,000 Indiana Grand (Listed), a one-mile race over the turf for fillies and mares.
New to 2020 are two Indiana sired stakes races set for Saturday, Oct. 17. The $150,000 Indiana Stallions Championship and the $150,000 Indiana Ladies Championship will be joined by two other stakes during the program, the $100,000 Crown Ambassador and the $100,000 Indiana Stallion Fillies to create a four-stakes evening, boosting purses over the $500,000 mark.
"We are anticipating another great season of racing at Indiana Grand," said Kevin Greely, director of racing. "Our Indiana Derby has become one of the area's top races during the summer months and will be supported by some really nice stakes on the undercard, including the newly named Jonathan B. Schuster Memorial. Being able to add two stakes for our Indiana sired program has also placed us in a position to offer the most purse money ever for our stakes races in the 18-year history of Indiana Grand."
Indiana Grand will close out the 18th season of Thoroughbred and Quarter Horse action Wednesday, Nov. 18 with the $150,000 To Much Coffee Stakes and the $150,000 Frances Slocum Stakes.
A complete list of stakes for the 2020 racing season at Indiana Grand will be available soon at www.indianagrand.com.
Live Thoroughbred and Quarter Horse racing will resume Tuesday, April 14 for the 120-day racing season. Action will begin at 2:15 p.m. Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Fridays with Saturdays' first post set for 6:15 p.m. No live racing will be held on six weekend dates, including Friday, April 17 and Saturday, April 18 as well as Saturday, May 23, Saturday, September 5, Friday, Nov. 13 and Saturday, Nov. 14. Closing day is set for Wednesday, Nov. 18.
Indiana Grand Racing & Casino, which is owned and operated by a subsidiary of Caesars Entertainment Corporation (NASDAQ: CZR), holds multiple awards for customer service, entertainment, gaming, dining, and diversity. Located in Shelbyville, Ind., Indiana Grand features more than 2,100 of the latest slots and table games in addition to a one-mile dirt racecourse and a seven-eighths mile turf course providing live Thoroughbred and Quarter Horse racing each year. Simulcast wagering is also offered year-round at Winner's Circle Race Sports Pub located on the casino floor as well as a Winner's Circle Race Sports Pub located in Clarksville, Ind. For more information, please visit www.IndianaGrand.com. Must be 18 or older to wager on horse racing at racetracks and 21 or older to gamble at sports books and casinos. Know When To Stop Before You Start.® Gambling Problem? Call 1-800-9-WITH-IT (1-800-994-8448) ©2020 Caesars License Company, LLC.
