This prestigious day at Indiana Grand Racing and Casino attracts big names in the jockey and trainer industry and if you attend the Indiana Derby for your first time this summer, you’ll understand why.Īre you familiar with the Kentucky Derby? The Indiana Derby is a mirror of the Kentucky Derby. You want in on that action? I do! The last two years set records in wagering with $4,104,657 in 2019 and $5,979,952 in 2020. This Grade III race has a $300,000 purse! Total stakes at the Indiana Derby will exceed $850,000. We’re talking big money on Indiana Derby day July 7. That prestigious win helped move the Indiana Derby to Graded Stakes status as a Grade III in 2002. The 2001 Indiana Derby winner, Orientate, went on to win the Breeders’ Cup Sprint that same year. Chris Polzin, director of racing at Indiana Grand Racing and Casino, took some time to chat with me about the history and how the race became what it is today and why it continues to grow. The Indiana Derby wasn’t always a Grade III stakes race, but that all changed thanks to a big win from a great horse back in 2001. This will be the ninth year at Indiana Grand.
The Indiana Derby at Indiana Grand Racing and Casino is July 7 and marks the 27th since the original running in 1995 at Hoosier Park. The summer’s biggest sporting event in Indiana is just around the corner.