Listed race | |
Location | Ellis Park Race Course Kentucky, United States |
---|---|
Inaugurated | 1884 (at Washington Park Race Track) |
Race type | Thoroughbred – Flat racing |
Website | American Derby |
Race information | |
Distance | 1+1⁄16 miles (8.5 furlongs) |
Surface | Turf |
Track | Left-handed |
Qualification | Three-year-olds |
Weight | Assigned |
Purse | $100,000 |
The American Derby is an American Thoroughbred horse race run annually at Arlington Park in Arlington Heights, Illinois. The inaugural American Derby was held at Chicago's old Washington Park Race Track on the city's South Side and raced there until 1905 when the facility was closed following the state's ban on gambling, and horse racing and the track was demolished. 1893's American Derby was the 2nd richest race in the U.S. during the 19th century. [1]
There was no racing in Chicago in 1895, 1896, 1897, 1899, and again in 1905 and 1906.[ citation needed ] The effect would be that the American Derby was not run from 1905 through 1925, except for 1916 when it was hosted by the Hawthorne Race Course in Stickney, Illinois.[ citation needed ]
Revived in 1926, it evolved to become one of the important events of the American racing season that drew some of the very best horses from all over the country. It was run at the new Washington Park Race Track in Homewood, Illinois, in 1926 and 1927 and then was held at the Arlington Park course in 1928 before returning to the new Washington Park in 1929 where it remained through 1957. From 1958 until its closure in 2021, the race was run at Arlington Park. In 2022, the race took place at Churchill Downs. [2]
Since 1992 the American Derby has been run on turf. Previously, it had been raced on the turf course from 1955 through 1957 and from 1970 through 1976. Over the years, the distance has varied:
Most wins by a jockey:
Hall of Fame jockey George Woolf won the race three years in a row from 1942 to 1944.
Most wins by a trainer:
Most wins by an owner:
† Dead Heat in 1984
†† Dead Heat in 1994
‡ In 1996, the first-place finisher Trail City was disqualified and placed second
The Kentucky Oaks is a Grade I stakes race for three-year-old Thoroughbred fillies staged annually in Louisville, Kentucky, United States. The race currently covers 1+1⁄8 miles (1,800 m) at Churchill Downs; the horses carry 121 pounds (55 kg). The Kentucky Oaks is held on the Friday before the Kentucky Derby each year. The winner gets $846,300 of the $1,500,000 purse, and a large garland blanket of lilies, resulting in the nickname "Lillies for the Fillies." A silver Kentucky Oaks Trophy is presented to the winner.
Churchill Downs is a horse racing complex located on Central Avenue in south Louisville, Kentucky, United States, famed for hosting the annual Kentucky Derby. It officially opened in 1875 and was named for Samuel Churchill, whose family was prominent in Kentucky for many years. The first Kentucky Derby, a Thoroughbred sweepstakes and part of today's horse racing Triple Crown, and the first Kentucky Oaks were held in the same year. Churchill Downs has also hosted the renowned Breeders' Cup on nine occasions, most recently on November 2 and 3, 2018.
Arlington Park was a horse race track in the Chicago suburb of Arlington Heights, Illinois. Called the Arlington Park Jockey Club during a period of its history, it was located adjacent to the Illinois Route 53 expressway and serviced by the Chicago and Northwestern Railroad.
Patrick Alan "Pat" Day is a retired American jockey. He is a four-time winner of the Eclipse Award for Outstanding Jockey and was inducted into the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame in 1991 and the Arkansas Sports Hall of Fame in 1999. Day won nine Triple Crown races and 12 Breeders' Cup races. He was once the leader for career Breeders' Cup wins though he was later surpassed as the events were expanded after he retired.
Hawthorne Race Course is a racetrack for horse racing in Stickney, Illinois, near Chicago.
The Arlington Million is a Grade 1 flat horse race in the United States for thoroughbred horses aged three years and upward on the turf. It was originally raced at the now-closed Arlington Park in Arlington Heights, Illinois over a distance of 1+1⁄4 miles.
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The Arlington-Washington Futurity is a Listed horse race for Thoroughbred two-year-olds. It is scheduled to run at a distance of one mile on the turf at Arlington Park, Arlington Heights, Illinois every fall and as at 2020 offers a purse of $100,000.
Washington Park Race Track was a popular horse racing venue in the Chicago metropolitan area from 1884 until 1977. It had two locations during its existence. It was first situated in what is the current location of the Washington Park Subdivision of the Woodlawn community area of Chicago in Cook County, Illinois, United States. This is located immediately south of both the current Washington Park community area and Washington Park. The track was later relocated to Homewood, Illinois, which is also in Cook County.
The Arlington Stakes is a Grade III American Thoroughbred horse race for horses aged four years old over a distance of one and one-sixteenth miles on the turf held annually in late May or early June at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky. The event currently carries a purse of $200,000.
Mark Guidry is a former American jockey. He ranks 22nd among jockeys in career wins with 5,222 wins as of March 7, 2014, the date of his last ride. He subsequently announced his retirement from riding to become a jockey's agent. This was Guidry's second retirement. He initially retired in 2007 and did not ride again for 4 more years.
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