Indiana Grand | Horse Racing Free Tips

The winner of the season opener could not have been more appropriately named. Sentimentaljourney, ridden by Albin Jimenez, scored the win in the first race of the season named in honor of Jonathan B. Schuster, former vice president and general manager at Indiana Grand who passed away over the winter.

A recent claim by Owner Maggi Moss, Sentimentaljourney was making her first start for the Tom Amoss Stable in the $37,000 allowance. The three-year-old daughter of Unbridled Express was claimed out of her last start a Fair Grounds in February with hopes of spending the summer at Indiana Grand.

“This was a Maggi Moss idea,” said Amoss, who has numerous track records to his credit in Indiana, including six training titles. “Because she (Sentimentaljourney) was Indiana sired and bred, we decided to take the plunge and what a beautiful payoff with the win today. We sure do miss the fans here, though. This is one of our favorite tracks to race at.”

Sentimentaljourney began her debut for the Amoss-Moss connection from post four. Jimenez sat patiently in mid pack of the eight-horse field as Betcha and Rocco Bowen surged to the front from the outside to lead the way in the five-furlong sprint. In the stretch, Sentimentaljourney found an inside path and surged through, scoring the win by one and three-quarter lengths over Forbidden Fruit and Malcolm Franklin. Real Deputee and Fernando De La Cruz finished third. The time of the sprint was 1:00.51.

“We were sitting along the rail and were just waiting,” said Jimenez, the track's 2015 leading jockey. “When the inside opened up, she went right through. It feels great to be back and I'm happy to be riding here this summer. Hopefully, we will see spectators soon. I miss having them here.”

The favorite of the field, Sentimentaljourney paid $5.20, $4.00 and $3.00 across the board. It was her second win in nine career starts and the first of 2020. She now has in excess of $55,000 on her card.

The 18th season of Thoroughbred and Quarter Horse racing started with a tribute to Schuster by Eric Halstrom, vice president and general manager of racing. Chaplain Otto Thorwarth held a moment of silence followed by a prayer to lead into the first race named in Schuster's honor.

“Jon was not only a great GM, he was a great friend,” added Amoss. “Anything you called upon him for, he was there for the horsemen. He was truly a horsemen's GM and will be missed.”

Live racing continues through Wednesday, Nov. 18 with action held Monday through Thursday beginning at 2:20 p.m. Four Saturday programs are slated for all-Quarter Horse days with a preliminary first post set at 2:20 p.m. July 4, Aug. 8, Oct. 23 and Oct. 24. Continuing in line with Governor Holcomb's plan to return to full operations for businesses in the state of Indiana, spectators are expected to return beginning July 4.

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Changes to the 2020 Indiana Thoroughbred racing program have been approved as Indiana's racetracks prepare to commence racing in mid-June after the COVID-19 pandemic delayed the start of the racing season. The Indiana Horse Racing Commission approved the recommended program in a virtual meeting last week.

Due to casino closures and the potential for reduced revenues once reopened, funding available for the program decreased significantly, with the new projected revenue being around $8.2 million. However, even with the decreased numbers, the Indiana Thoroughbred racing program offered for 2020 remains strong.

“Going into this year's racing program, we were excited to offer a program with many enhancements; however, due to the unique situation we are now in, many of those elements had to be put on hold until the 2021 program,” says Jessica Barnes, director of racing and breed development for the Indiana Horse Racing Commission. “I'm thankful the tracks, horsemen's groups and commission were able to all come together to offer the best program we could during these unprecedented times.”

Indiana Grand Racing & Casino was originally scheduled to open April 14, but the track and the backside were closed due to the statewide COVID-19 pandemic quarantine on March 16. With approval from the governor's office, the Indiana Horse Racing Commission (IHRC) recently released a phased approach to begin horse racing in Indiana, with the backside of the tracks now open. The plan calls for racing to commence at the two pari-mutuel tracks the week of June 16 without spectators. If there is no change to Governor Holcomb's “Back on Track Indiana” plan, spectators will be able to return to the tracks on July 4.

The new race schedule will see a reduced number of races, totaling 206 restricted Thoroughbred races. While the lucrative restricted Indiana-bred stakes schedule remains intact, there have been purse reductions enacted across the board. The six Indiana Signature Stakes (which includes the two newest races that were approved in February), and typically pay out $150,000, have been reduced to $100,000, while the other 22 restricted Indiana-bred and Indiana-sired stakes will be contested at $75,000. In total, the restricted stakes will pay more than $2 million in 2020.

One noticeable change between the initial 2020 program and the one recently approved is within the Indiana Breeders Awards. The award percentage, designed to reward breeders for foaling in Indiana, will remain at 2019 levels.

“I'd like to thank the track for the assistance they've offered the program,” says Blaine Davidson, member of the Indiana Thoroughbred Breed Development Advisory Committee. “We're very, very fortunate to even be able to race this year, and I'm very pleased with what I've seen. I know it's not what everyone expected, but we're making it work.”

While the commission has approved the revised plan, Barnes is quick to point out that things are able to change as the casinos open up and patrons return to the track for on-track wagering.

“If we get a month or two into the reopening, and projections are better than what we have forecasted, we have the flexibility to go back to the commission with a revised proposal,” explains Barnes. “This is a fluid situation, and our program has the ability to adjust in a manner that will best benefit our breeders, owners and trainers.”

More information can be found on the program's website (http://in.gov/hrc/tb/).

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