Return of Illinois Derby Highlights Hawthorne Meet

The $200,000 Illinois Derby will return for Hawthorne's spring/summer Thoroughbred meet, which begins Saturday, Mar. 23. The racing season will extend six weeks longer in comparison to the 2023 year as racing concludes Sunday, Oct. 23.

The Illinois Derby, scheduled for Sunday, Apr. 21, will serve as an official prep for this year's GI Preakness S. Hawthorne Race Course will pay for the Illinois Derby winner's entry fee into the Preakness if they choose to run. The Illinois Derby, previously a Grade III, was most recently contested in 2017.

“We were able to learn from last year and made some adjustments to both the racing schedule as well as the races we are offering,” Hawthorne Director of Racing Jim Miller said. “This schedule provides a good circuit for those horsemen who race in warmer destinations during the winter to be able to have a summer location that fluidly fits their schedule. We have seen a large increase in stall applications and have noticed a rise in 2-year-olds on the stall applications. We have also added four starter series this meet that will have increasing purses throughout the series. Horsemen who want to protect a good claim will now have an option to race each month for four months straight. When our meet ended last September, our crew conducted all of their turf preparation work before the winter months. This will allow for an earlier grass start the first week of May as well as an additional six weeks of turf racing through the end of the meet compared to last season.”

Click here for more on Hawthorne's stakes schedule.

The post Return of Illinois Derby Highlights Hawthorne Meet appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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Graded Stakes Winner Multiplier Euthanized After Injuries Sustained In Tokyo City Cup

A Grade 3 winner with graded stakes placings on both dirt and turf, 7-year-old Multiplier had to be euthanized Monday due to injuries he sustained in the Sunday's G3 Tokyo City Cup at Santa Anita Park. According to the LA Times, the son of The Factor was at the rear of the five-horse field when appearing to struggle around the far turn, and was pulled up by jockey Ruben Fuentes. Diagnostics showed fractures in his right front ankle, which were later revealed to be worse than originally thought.

Multiplier's biggest win came for Brendan Walsh in the G3 Illinois Derby in 2017. After running off the board in both the Preakness and Belmont Stakes, Multiplier was moved to the West Coast with trainer Peter Miller. He finished third in the G2 Del Mar Handicap (turf) in 2018 and second in the G1 Santa Anita Handicap (dirt) in 2020.

Dropped in for a $50,000 tag in February of 2021, Multiplier was claimed by trainer Andrew Lerner on behalf of Biggleague Racing, LLC. The Tokyo City Cup was the gelding's third start off the claim.

Overall, Multiplier ran out a record of 4-6-4 from 37 career starts, earning just shy of $600,000 on the track.

Multiplier is the eighth racing or training death at Santa Anita since the racing season began Dec. 26, and the third during racing on the dirt course.

Read more at the LA Times.

The post Graded Stakes Winner Multiplier Euthanized After Injuries Sustained In Tokyo City Cup appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

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