Purse increase for final days

Oaklawn Park will raise purses between $1,000 and $2,000 per race for the final 10 dates of the meet, the track announced Wednesday. The increase will go into effect Saturday. It is the third purse increase of the meet, and it will make for allowances as high as $72,000 in value and maiden special weights worth a record $66,000. The bottom-level purse will be $21,000.

“Mother Nature has definitely made this a challenging meet for all of us, but the support for our racing program from both horsemen and fans has never wavered,” Oaklawn director of racing David Longinotti said in a release. “We had an outstanding Rebel Stakes Day that featured two returning champions, and our expectations are high heading into the Racing Festival of the South. We appreciate the cooperation the horsemen have shown all season and are excited to reward them with higher purses the last 10 days.”

The meet concludes April 11.