A stakes schedule that includes the Super Derby (G2), which will have its purse increased to $750,000, highlights Louisiana Downs’s 83-day meeting, which opens on May 15.

Live racing at the Bossier City, Louisiana, track continues through October 4.

The 30th edition of the Super Derby, a 1 1/8-mile race for three-years-olds, will be run on September 19. The 2008 edition of the race was worth $515,000.

“We are thrilled to increase the purse of the Super Derby,” said Trent McIntosh, Louisiana Downs’s director of racing. “It is a nationally known race with a tremendous resume and helps anchor an exciting stakes schedule for the season.”

The Super Derby is one of six stakes races that will be contested on September 19. The races have a combined purse value of $1.2-million.

The $100,000 Super Derby Prelude, the traditional local prep for the Super Derby, will be run on August 15. The connections of the Prelude winner earn a free starting spot in the Super Derby.

Louisiana Champions Day, now known as Louisiana Cup Day, will be held on August 1. Eight stakes races for Louisiana-breds will be contested, six of which feature purses worth $100,000 each.