As Indiana Grand prepares for the next all-Quarter Horse racing day Saturday, the funding supported by the Indiana Quarter Horse Breed Development (IQHBD) recently announced several facets to boost the program.
“At this time, the casino operations for the past three months have been much higher than anticipated,” said Jessica Barnes, Director of Breed Development for the Indiana Horse Racing Commission. “Estimated slots revenue has added more than $189,000 into the fund for 2021. While we don’t know what the exact revenue numbers will be for the remainder of 2021, we are confident that the revenue for these months will meet our projections and most likely be higher than expected.”
IQHBD is taking a tiered approach to the added funds. The plan includes implementation of owner, breeder, and stallion awards on all trials, matching the same manner percentage and method as awards on overnight races. Also, purses have been increased by $1,000 per overnight race. Also, Indiana bred overnight races will be added in increments of five, not to exceed a total of 15 additional races throughout the remainder of the meet.
“We are excited to see our Quarter Horse program continue to grow,” added Eric Halstrom, Vice President and General Manager of Racing. “The additional plan is perfect timing as we prepare to host two regional qualifiers for the AQHA Bank of America Challenge Championships in September. This will give us great momentum as we proceed into 2022 and bring the Challenge Championships to Indiana for the first time, which will bring national attention to the state’s Quarter Horse program.”
The two regional challenge qualifiers are set for trials during the all-Quarter Horse day Sept. 4. The finals for the John Deere Juvenile Challenge and the Q-Racing Videos Distaff Challenge are set for Sept. 20. Qualifiers will advance to the finals slated for The Downs at Albuquerque in New Mexico on Oct. 23.
Indiana Grand is set to host three more all-Quarter Horse days in 2021. Saturday’s event features trials for the QHRAI Stallion Service Auction Futurity and Derby along with trials for the Bob Woodard Memorial Classic. The card, which begins at 10 a.m., will also showcase several activities to complement the card, including Hot Diggity Dog Weiner Dog racing.
Other all-Quarter Horse days on the schedule are Sept. 4 and Oct. 9, each beginning at 10 a.m.
Indiana Champions Day is Oct. 30 and will feature a full card of both Thoroughbred and Quarter Horse racing. Six races for each breed will be spotlighted, including six stakes races for Quarter Horses. The program begins at noon with purses exceeding $1 million.
