Purdue’s Caesars Entertainment Equine Specialty Hospital took center stage recently as the distinguished Winner’s Circle sponsor for the 29th running of the Indiana Derby at Horseshoe Indianapolis in Shelbyville. The event was held on Saturday, July 8 and featured over $1.1 million in purses that attracted a field of more than 200 horses. Commonly referred to as Indiana’s biggest horse-racing event of the year, Indiana Derby Day was created to build a premier racing event for the young Indiana Thoroughbred racing program. The races have exceeded all expectations, even achieving prestigious Graded Stakes status following the 2001 running of the event.
In conjunction with Caesars Entertainment Equine Specialty Hospital’s sponsorship, Purdue University College of Veterinary Medicine Dean Willie Reed hosted a group of some 52 guests who came to see the Indiana Derby Day races. The racing got underway just after noon and continued all the way through the afternoon to the grand finale race, the Indiana Derby, at 6:40 p.m. “As a proud provider of services to equine athletes throughout the country with state-of-the-art diagnostic imaging, revolutionary sports medicine, and surgical expertise, we are pleased to celebrate these equine athletes, trainers, and owners at the summer’s biggest racing event of the year,” Dean Reed said.
The racing on Indiana Derby Day was complemented by numerous activities, including a Virtual Reality Jockey Station, Cigar Rolling Station, and an Indiana Derby Hat Contest. In addition to the over 3,000 fans in attendance, many others saw the Indiana Derby televised live by FOX Sports 2. The big winner of the day was regally-bred three-year-old colt Verifying who outlasted a late surge by Raise Cain to claim $176,400 of the $300,000 Indiana Derby purse. The favorite going into the race, Verifying is the son of the 2018 Triple Crown winner, Justify, and had the most career earning of all the contenders in the race including the most 2023 earnings.