Louisiana Downs toyed with the date of its marquee race this year by
moving the Grade 2, $500,000 Super Derby up two weeks to Saturday. The
gamble has paid off. Entries for 1 1/8-mile race were taken Wednesday,
and the track drew one of its largest and most competitive fields in
years, with the group of nine including shippers from Illinois,
Kentucky, New York, and Southern California.
“I think anybody in the U.S. who runs a Grade 2 for 3-year-olds this
time of year would be thrilled with what we put together,” said Trent
McIntosh, director of operations for Louisiana Downs.
McIntosh said the strategy with the Super Derby was to place the race
more in line schedule-wise with other Grade 2 and Grade 3 races for the
division, rather than adhere to the traditional late-September date
that was geared toward luring Travers runners and/or horses prepping for
the Breeders’ Cup.
“We thought, ‘Let’s try to put our race in a realistic position,’ ” said McIntosh.
Read More