General
Racetracks List - San Antonio Handicap - Run at Santa Anita since the mid 1950s, this Grade II race is for thoroughbreds age three and older. Distance is a mile and an 8th on the Polytrack surface. Pacific Classic - Since 1993 this has been a Grade I event is far and away the most prestigious race held at Del Mar Racetrack. The purse for this race is rdaddphp million and features an automatic spot in the Breeders' Cup Classic for the winner. Open for thoroughbreds aged 3 and older. Kentucky Derby - Held at Churchill Downs annually on the first Saturday in May, this 3 year old race is the marquee event in all of thoroughbred racing. This mile and a quarter race is the first leg of the Triple Crown, which consists of the Kentucky Derby, The Preakness Stakes, and The Belmont Stakes. The distance of this race is almost always the farthest a thoroughbred has run up to that point, and the field by far the largest they will ever compete against. The Preakness - Held two weeks following the Kentucky Derby at Pimlico Racetrack, this race is the 2nd leg of the Triple Crown. Horses run a mile and 3/16th's, and high drama usually accompanies the Preakness because of the possibility of a Triple Crown if the Kentucky Derby winner prevails. Belmont Stakes - Run three weeks after the Preakness, The Belmont Stakes is the final, and toughest, leg of the Triple Crown. Run at a mile and a half, this race is the last remaining Grade I stakes race at that distance run in North America. In today's racing climate, the Kentucky Derby and the Breeders' Cup Classic are annually the biggest races, but a Belmont with a Triple Crown at stake is bigger than any other event in racing. Gulfstream Park Handicap - A Grade 2 race held in early March with a 0,000 purse, this race is open to horses 4 and older and run at a distance of a mile and 3/16th's. Santa Anita Handicap - Known as "The Big Cap" because when first run in the mid-1930s it's 0,000 purse was the largest ever offered, this mile and a quarter race is run in March and is open to thoroughbreds age 4 and older. Seabiscuit returned from injury in 1940 to win this race after being denied two previous times.
Race Event List - Santa Anita Derby - A Grade 1 thoroughbred race held annually in early April, this race is open to three year olds only and is the biggest west coast Kentucky Derby prep race. Run at a mile and an 8th, six winners of this race have subsequently won the Kentucky Derby. Swale Stakes - Named after Seattle Slew's fantastic son, this 6.5 furlong dirt race was run at 7 furlongs when first run in 1985 following Swale's fatal heart attack after winning the 1984 Belmont and changed to the current distance in 2007. Louisiana Derby - Open to thoroughbred horses aged 3, this race is currently run at 1&1/16th's miles, though before 1989 it was run at a mile and an 8th. 1988 winner Risen Star went on to win the Preakness and Belmont. Apple Blossom Handicap - Run at Oaklawn Park, this Grade 1 horse race is open to fillies 4 and older. Run at a mile and a 16th, this race has been run since 1958. Azeri won this race three straight time from 2002-04. Breeders' Cup Classic - Next to the Kentucky Derby, this race is the biggest race of them all. Run since 1984 at a mile and a quarter, this race is for 3 year olds and older, and is by invitation only. Run in October at the Breeders' Cup host site, most Grade 1 races run earlier in the year feature spots in this race for the winner. Bold Ruler Handicap - Named after the sire of Secretariat, this 6 furlong race is run in mid-May at Belmont. Kentucky Oaks - This race, held at Churchill Downs the day before the Kentucky Derby, is a mile and an 8th on dirt. Open only to 3 year old fillies, this Grade 1 race features a 0,000 purse. Pimlico Special - A Grade 1 race for horses 3 and older, though generally speaking 4 year olds and up run in this race. The very first Pimlico Special was run in 1937 and was won by War Admiral, and the 2nd was the famous match race between War Admiral and Seabiscuit in 1938. Run at a mile and 3/16ths, this race was discontinued after 1958 but revived in 1988. It was not run in 2007, with the half-million dollar purse spread out among other Maryland races.