Truthful Grounds Boosts Purses for Lecomte, Risen Star

The stakes schedule for the 153rd season of racing at Truthful Grounds Race Course & Slots has been introduced, highlighted by a handbag enhance in two “Street to the Kentucky Derby” factors races.

The Risen Star (G2) might be bumped from $400,000 to $500,000 and the Lecomte (G3) might be elevated to $250,000, up $50,000 from final 12 months. A complete of $325,000 in will increase is scheduled for the monitor’s 63-race stakes program, totaling $8.875 million in purses in the course of the 76-day 2024-2025 Thoroughbred meet.

“The Louisiana Street to the Derby and Oaks has established itself as probably the most productive paths to Louisville and we hope bolstering these races helps to take care of its presence because the premiere collection of Derby preps,” mentioned Jason Boulet, Director of Racing. 

Eight present stakes acquired a $25,000 increase, together with the centennial operating of the Thanksgiving Traditional. The six furlong filth dash scheduled for Nov. 28 will now supply a $225,000 purse.

Many stakes had been boosted mid-season final 12 months attributable to robust deal with, and Truthful Grounds will preserve the $200,000 of added cash within the purses for the $150,000 Tom Benson Memorial, in addition to the $100,000 Allen Lacombe and $100,000 Black Gold (sibling turf stakes going 1 1/16 miles for 3-year-olds), and 5 $100,000 state-bred affairs: Louisiana Broodmare of the Yr, Louisiana Stallion of the Yr, Edward J. Johnston Memorial, Purple Camelia, and Web page Cortez.

Opening day is slated for Friday, Nov. 22, and all six Louisiana-bred stakes slated for the primary two racing applications have been bumped as much as $100,000. It is the third version of every race, however each the Andrew Ney Memorial, a six furlong filth dash for older horses, and its feminine counterpart, the Delmar R. Caldwell Memorial, have been renamed from final 12 months to honor departed members of Louisiana’s racing group.

Truthful Grounds’ march towards the 151st operating of the Kentucky Derby (G1) begins Saturday, Dec. 21 with Street to the Derby Kickoff Day, adopted by Street to the Derby Day Saturday, Jan. 18, Louisiana Derby Preview Day Saturday, Feb. 15, and Louisiana Derby Day Saturday, March 22. Every program will characteristic Kentucky Derby & Oaks preps in addition to extra graded stakes. Over the previous six years since Nation Home got here by New Orleans on his method to profitable Kentucky Derby 145, Truthful Grounds’ Derby prep races have produced three winners, 4 place finishers, and three present finishers, together with three others who rounded out the superfecta. Final season was no totally different because the second and fourth place finishers in Kentucky Derby 150 had been Risen Star victor Sierra Leone and Louisiana Derby winner Catching Freedom, respectively.

A pair of 2-year-old affairs with Kentucky Derby and Oaks level implications (10-5-3-2-1) are the spotlight of the eight stakes to be carded on Street to the Derby Kickoff Day: the $100,000 Gun Runner contested at 1 1/16 miles and the 1 mile 70 yards $100,000 Untapable for fillies. 

Street to the Derby Day will showcase six stakes, headlined by the newly minted $250,000 Lecomte Stakes (G3), which was prolonged from one mile to 1 1/16 miles 5 years in the past, and the $150,000 Silverbulletday Stakes introduced by Fasig-Tipton (fillies going 1 mile and 70 yards). The highest 5 finishers in every race obtain 20-10-6-4-2 factors on the Street to the Kentucky Derby introduced by Woodford Reserve (G1) and the Longines Kentucky Oaks (G1), respectively.

  

Louisiana Derby Preview Day will characteristic the enriched $500,000 Risen Star (G2), which was prolonged from 1 1/16 to 1 1/8 miles 5 years in the past, and the $300,000 Rachel Alexandra introduced by Fasig-Tipton (G2), for fillies to be contested over 1 1/16 miles. The highest 5 finishers obtain 50-25-15-10-5 factors on the Street to the Kentucky Derby and Oaks, respectively. Every of the points-earners in final 12 months’s Risen Star made it to the beginning gates of Kentucky Derby 150. The Rachel Alexandra has produced three of the final six Kentucky Oaks winners in Fairly Mischievous, Monomoy Lady, and Serengeti Empress. The 2014 victress Untapable additionally took down the Run for the Lilies.

  

Louisiana Derby Day is scheduled for Saturday, March 22, and it’ll card eight stakes price a complete of $2.65 million. Written at 1 3/16 miles now for the sixth 12 months, the 112th operating of the Twinspires.com $1,000,000 Louisiana Derby (G2) is price 100-50-25-15-10 factors to the highest 5 finishers on the Street to the Kentucky Derby. Run at 1 1/16 miles, the $400,000 Truthful Grounds Oaks Offered by Fasig-Tipton (G2) may also be carded, awarding 100-50-25-15-10 factors en path to the Kentucky Oaks.

Truthful Grounds 2024-2025 racing season will see the one hundredth operating of each the $225,000 Thanksgiving Traditional and the $500,000 New Orleans Traditional (G2). 

The 1 1/18 miles New Orleans Traditional is slated for March 22, and can function the grand finale of the filth route stakes collection for older horses which begins with the $100,000 Tenacious (Dec. 21), the $175,000 Louisiana (G3) (Jan. 18), adopted by the $250,000 Mineshaft (G3) (Feb. 15). The three graded stakes on this collection will once more be introduced by Relyne GI by Hagyard.

Truthful Grounds’ stakes schedule additionally gives a collection of distinguished turf route and dash races for older horses. Culminating with the $300,000 Muniz Memorial (G2) on March 22, the open firm turf route collection begins with the 1 1/16 miles $100,000 Buddy Diliberto Memorial (Dec. 21), adopted by the 1 1/16 miles $100,000 Colonel E.R. Bradley (Jan. 18), and the $175,000 Truthful Grounds Stakes (G3) (Feb. 15). Each the Muniz and the Truthful Grounds, every written for 1 1/8 miles, will once more be introduced by Horse Racing Nation.

The turf collection for feminine routers builds as much as the 1 1/16 miles $150,000 Tom Benson Memorial on March 22, which final 12 months was received by Delahaye who went on to win the Mint Julep (G3) at Churchill Downs for coach Chad Brown. Following the identical schedule because the male counterparts, the collection begins with the Blushing Okay.D. (Dec. 21), adopted by the Marie G. Krantz Memorial (Jan. 18) and the Albert M. Stall Memorial (Feb. 15), every written for $100,000 going 1 1/16 miles.

The open firm turf dash collection features a trio of 5 1/2 furlong occasions providing a $100,000 purse, with the Richard R. Scherer Memorial Stakes on Dec. 21, adopted by the Duncan F. Kenner on Jan. 18, and the Colonel Energy on Feb. 15. 

With the addition of the $100,000 Robert “Bobby” Kelly Memorial, a quartet of older feminine dash stakes is on the 2024–2025 docket. The turf collection retains the identical $100,000 purse construction however follows a unique schedule than the male counterparts. Starting with the Pan Zareta on Saturday, Nov. 30, the Nelson J. Menard goes subsequent within the line-up on Thursday, Dec. 26, adopted by the Robert “Bobby” Kelly Memorial on Saturday, Feb. 1., and at last the Mardi Gras Stakes, which might be held on Tuesday, March 4.

Louisiana Champions Day is Saturday, Dec. 14, headlined by the $150,000 Louisiana Champions Day Traditional, received final 12 months by Set Hut’s Touchuponastar. The standard seven stakes are scheduled with the races run in numerous divisions over quite a lot of distances on each filth and turf. This 12 months the Champions Day Girls might be held on the Stall-Wilson Turf Course. 

Closing day is Sunday, March 23 and it’ll characteristic three state-bred stakes, every providing $100,000: the Star Guitar Offered by Brittlyn Steady (1 1/16 miles), the Shantel Lanerie Memorial (fillies and mares going 1 mile 70 yards), and the Web page Cortez, a turf dash for 3-year-old and up females.

The primary situation guide might be discovered right here.

Common submit time for the 76-day, 2024-2025 Truthful Grounds racing season might be 12:45 p.m. CT. There might be an earlier midday CT first submit on Thanksgiving Day (Nov. 28), Street to the Derby Kickoff Day (Dec. 21), Street to the Derby Day (Jan. 18) Louisiana Derby Preview Day (Feb. 15), and Louisiana Derby Day (March 22).  

This press launch has not been edited by BloodHorse. If there are any questions please contact the group that produced the discharge.