Indiana Oaks

Horseshoe Indianapolis concluded its 124-day season Nov. 14 with a record total domestic handle of $282 million. The new mark eclipses the previous record of $279 million set in 2023. "Once again, we are very proud of our racing program this season and it is the result of a strong team effort between our staff, horsemen, and the Indiana Horse Racing Commission," said Horseshoe Indianapolis Vice President and General Manager of Racing Eric Halstrom. "Everyone contributed to our success this season, which is clearly shown in our wagering results. We...

The Indiana Horse Racing Commission (IHRC) approved 123 days of live racing for the 2025 season at Horseshoe Indianapolis during its regular meeting at the track Thursday, Oct. 24. Thoroughbred and Quarter Horse racing will mirror the 2024 schedule. There will be six dates dedicated to Quarter Horses exclusively. Racing will begin Tuesday, Apr. 15 and run through Thursday, Nov. 13, 2025, with first post set for 2:10 p.m. ET Monday through Thursday. The track's marquee events--the GIII Indiana Derby and GIII Indiana Oaks--are scheduled for Saturday, July 5, with...

Chatalas (Gun Runner), all-the-way winner of last year's GII Chandelier Stakes prior to a down-the-field finish in the GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies while under the care of Mark Glatt, was sent to trainer Grant Forster this term with an eye on the age-restricted dirt stakes east of the Mississippi. The plan was off to an auspicious beginning Saturday when the bay, having her first start of 2024, fought back tenaciously at the fence to take Saturday's GIII Indiana Oaks. Sent straight into the lead from the inside post by...

Winner of three of his four starts on the grass last season, including two at the Grade III level, Amerman Racing's Endlessly (Oscar Performance) returns to the grass for the first time as a 3-year-old as the 6-5 morning-line favorite for Saturday's $750,000 GI Belmont Derby. Typically contested over 10 furlongs at Belmont Park, this year's renewal takes place over a mile and three-sixteenths at Aqueduct. Victorious in the GIII Del Mar Juvenile Turf and GIII Zuma Beach Stakes, Endlessly was a wide-trip eighth in the GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile...

A record $5.03 million has been allocated to the 2024 stakes schedule at Horseshoe Indianapolis, a program highlighted by the $300,000 GIII Indiana Derby and the $200,000 GIII Indiana Oaks, each to be contested Saturday, July 6, 2024. Some 42 stakes will be offered over the course of the season, which gets off to a unique beginning on Monday, Apr. 8 to coincide with Total Solar Eclipse Day. The afternoon's features include the appropriately named Dark Side of the Moon and Total Eclipse of the Heart handicaps for Indiana-bred and...

A pair of Grade I events for 3-year-olds on grass will co-anchor a loaded 12-race program at Belmont Park Saturday. European invader The Foxes (Ire) (Churchill {Ire}), a narrow winner of the G2 Dante S. May 18 and fifth-place finisher after stumbling at the start in the G1 English Derby June 3, will make the trip across the pond for trainer Andrew Balding for the GI Belmont Derby Invitational. The 7-2 morning-line favorite, drawn widest of all in post 11, will square off against 10 rivals, including GII Pennine Ridge...

Horseshoe Indianapolis is proposing a 2023 mixed-meet racing schedule of 123 dates that pares four dates from the Thoroughbred portion of the calendar, down to 117 from the 121 Thoroughbred dates that had been granted this year. Pending approval at this Thursday's Indiana Horse Racing Commission (IHRC) meeting, the 2023 mixed meet will run Apr. 18-Nov. 17. That's roughly the same template that Horseshoe Indianapolis used this past season, although next year's meet is scheduled to end on the Friday before Thanksgiving instead of running into the holiday week and...

The book on training the modern racehorse goes something this: Give them at least six weeks off between races, start them no more than five times a year and never take a chance. It's a book that, apparently, Ken McPeek has never read. Among top-tier trainers, there is no one like him. He'll run fillies against the boys, run back in a week and he's not afraid to throw a 50-1 bomb into a race or, in the case of 2022 GI Belmont S. winner Sarava (Wild Again), a 70-1...

A total of 38 Thoroughbred stakes races offering more than $4.6 million in purses will be featured during the 2022 racing season at Horseshoe Indianapolis. The season runs Apr. 19 through Nov. 23 and is highlighted by the 28th running of the GIII Indiana Derby Saturday, July 9. That card alone offers $1.1 million in stakes purses and will also feature the GIII Indiana Oaks. Horseshoe Indianapolis will also feature the third Indiana Champions Day Saturday, Oct. 29. The event will showcase 10 stakes combined by Thoroughbred and Quarter Horse...

The 2021 racing season at Indiana Grand Racing and Casino will feature an expanded stakes schedule of 40 races worth over $3.65 million. The stakes schedule is highlighted by the $300,000 GIII Indiana Derby, which will be held at mid-week for the second time when it is run July 7. That Wednesday card's six-stakes lineup also includes the $200,000 GIII Indiana Oaks. "We moved Indiana Derby Day to Wednesday in 2020 due to crowd restrictions and other safety protocols in place due to COVID-19," said Eric Halstrom, vice president and...

Jockey Martin Garcia has tested positive for COVID-19 and was forced to miss his scheduled ride aboard Miss T Too (Into Mischief) for trainer Bill Mott in Wednesday night's GIII Indiana Oaks. Daily Racing Form was first to report the news after speaking to Garcia's agent Jay Fedor. Garcia was replaced by Julien Leparoux. DRF said that Garcia, who had ridden at Ellis Park, Los Alamitos and Prairie Meadows in the last seven days, was tested Tuesday at Keeneland, a requirement to ride at the meeting which began Wednesday afternoon....

Shedaresthedevil (Daredevil), heroine of Oaklawn's GIII Honeybee S. Mar. 7, is the clear-cut horse to beat in Wednesday evening's GIII Indiana Oaks. The bay followed a well-beaten third behind division heavyweights Swiss Skydiver (Daredevil) and Venetian Harbor (Munnings) in the GIII Fantasy S. May 1 with a powerful optional claiming tally at Churchill Downs last time June 5. "She ran a huge one," trainer Brad Cox said. "We were looking just to get a race in her between the Fantasy and wherever we ended up, which ended up being the...