Group races, also known as Pattern races, or Graded races in some jurisdictions, are the highest level of races in

Thoroughbred horse racing Thoroughbred racing is a sport and industry involving the racing of Thoroughbred horses. It is governed by different national bodies. There are two forms of the sport – flat racing and jump racing, the latter known as National Hunt racing in ...

. They include most of the world's iconic races, such as, in Europe, the

Derby Derby ( ) is a city and unitary authority area in Derbyshire, England. It lies on the banks of the River Derwent in the south of Derbyshire, which is in the East Midlands Region. It was traditionally the county town of Derbyshire. Derby g ...

Irish Derby The Irish Derby ( Irish: Dearbaí na hÉireann) is a Group 1 flat horse race in Ireland open to three-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It is run at the Curragh over a distance ...

and

Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe The Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe is a Group 1 flat horse race in France open to thoroughbreds aged three years or older. It is run at Longchamp Racecourse in Paris, France, over a distance ...

, in Australia, the

Melbourne Cup The Melbourne Cup is a Thoroughbred horse race held in Melbourne, Australia. It is a 3200-metre race for three-year-olds and over, conducted by the Victoria Racing Club on the Flemington Racecourse in Melbourne, Victoria as part of the Melb ...

and in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

, the Kentucky Derby and

Breeders' Cup The Breeders' Cup World Championships is an annual series of Grade I Thoroughbred horse races, operated by Breeders' Cup Limited, a company formed in 1982. From its inception in 1984 through 2006, it was a single-day event; starting in 2007, ...

races. Victory in these races marks a horse as being particularly talented, if not exceptional, and they are extremely important in determining

stud Stud may refer to the following terms: Animals * Stud (animal), an animal retained for breeding ** Stud farm, a property where livestock are bred Arts and entertainment * Stud (band), a British progressive rock group * The Stud (bar), a gay ba ...

values. They are also sometimes referred to as Black type races, since any horse that has won one of these races is printed in bold type in sales catalogues.

By country

Australia

In Australia, the Australian Pattern Committee recommends to the

Australian Racing Board The Australian Racing Board, established in 1998, is the peak national administration body for Thoroughbred racing in Australia. The statutory bodies for racing in each State or Territory, known as the Principal Racing Authorities, set up the Au ...

(ARB) which races shall be designated as Group races. The list of races approved by the ARB is accepted by the International Cataloguing Standards Committee (ICSC) for publication by

The Jockey Club The Jockey Club is the breed registry for Thoroughbred horses in the United States and Canada. It is dedicated to the improvement of Thoroughbred breeding and racing and fulfills that mandate by serving many segments of the industry through its s ...

(US) in The Blue Book, thus providing international recognition for Australia's best races. There are four grades of Group races in Australia: * Group 1 - 72 races - minimum prize money A$350,000 * Group 2 - 83 races - minimum prize money A$175,000 * Group 3 - 112 races - minimum prize money A$115,000 * Listed Races - 280 races - minimum prize money A$80,000 Australia has a total of approximately 540 to 550 Group races from a season total of almost 21,000 races. These races were collectively known as Principal Races until about 1979. For a list of Group races see List of Australian Group races.

Europe

In Europe the designation of flat races is agreed by the European Pattern Committee. The Committee grade races into one of three levels, dependent on the average official ratings achieved by the first four finishers in a race over a three-year period. The breakdown is as follows: * Group 1 - Minimum official rating of 115 (110 for 2 year olds) - Classics and other races of major international importance * Group 2 - Minimum official rating of 110 (105 for 2 year olds) - less important international races * Group 3 - Minimum official rating of 105 (100 for 2 year olds) - primarily domestic races Like Australia, there is also a grade of races just below "Group" level, known as "Listed races". These have less prestige than the group races but are still more important than

handicap races A handicap race in horse racing is a race in which horses carry different weights, allocated by the handicapper. A better horse will carry a heavier weight, to give it a disadvantage when racing against slower horses. The skill in betting on a h ...

. Listed races also provide their winners and placed horses with "black type" in sales catalogues and their creation was initially left up to each country to regulate. Listed races in Europe are now also regulated by the European Pattern Committee. The current

British Horseracing Authority The British Horseracing Authority, also known simply as the BHA, is the regulatory authority for horse racing in Great Britain. It was formed on 31 July 2007, after the merger of the British Horseracing Board (BHB) and the Horseracing Regulato ...

rules state that a race in Great Britain is a Listed race if "in any particular year, it is a flat race which appears as a listed race in the European Pattern Race Book. The pattern system, overseen by the European Pattern Committee, is fluid and the Group status of key races can change. By this method, the Prince of Wales Stakes at Royal Ascot was upgraded from Group 2 to Group 1 in the year 2000. However, a number of checks and balances are in place which ensure that changes to the Pattern are gradual and evolutionary, thereby giving the racing industry time to adjust. In particular, the current European Pattern Committee "Ground Rules" explicitly state that no race may be upgraded by more than one Group in any one year. Such restrictions can prove troublesome when major new races are launched. For example, the

Dubai World Cup The Dubai World Cup (Arabic: كأس دبي العالمي) is a Thoroughbred horse race held annually since 1996 and contested at the Meydan Racecourse (Arabic: ميدان) which in Arabic suggests a place wh ...

, the world's richest horse race, was only given Listed status for its inaugural running in 1996.

National Hunt In horse racing in the United Kingdom, France and Republic of Ireland, National Hunt racing requires horses to jump fences and ditches. National Hunt racing in the UK is informally known as "jumps" and is divided into two major distinct branches: ...

racing in Europe has an equivalent grading system where the races are known as Grade 1, Grade 2, Grade 3 and Listed races respectively. This takes place independently of the European Pattern system above, which applies only to flat races.

Hong Kong, China

There are 31 Group races held in Hong Kong, China. Group 1: Group 2 - 7 Group 3 - 12

North America

In North America, the equivalent are known as

Graded stakes race A graded stakes race is a thoroughbred horse race in the United States that meets the criteria of the American Graded Stakes Committee of the Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association (TOBA). A specific grade level (I, II, III or listed) is the ...

s. Unlike in some other countries,

can be included in the North American and Australian grading system; although most graded stakes races in North America and Group races in Australia are

conditions races Conditions races are horse races in which the weights carried by the runners are laid down by the conditions attached to the race. Weights are allocated according to the sex of the runners, with female runners carrying less weight than males; the ...

, and handicaps are more often seen in races of lower level, there are still several handicaps that are Grade I or Group 1 races respectively.

Influence on breeding

The pattern system exerts a huge influence on the bloodstock market, particularly in relation to the

stud fee A stud animal is a registered animal retained for breeding. The terms for the male of a given animal species (stallion, bull, rooster, etc.) usually imply that the animal is intact—that is, not castrated—and therefore capable of siring offsp ...

that a stallion can command for covering a

mare A mare is an adult female horse or other equine. In most cases, a mare is a female horse over the age of three, and a filly is a female horse three and younger. In Thoroughbred horse racing, a mare is defined as a female horse more than fo ...

at stud. This will be dictated almost entirely by the stallion's performances in Pattern races during its racing career. Only the very best horses can perform successfully in Group 1 events and such animals invariably command the highest stud fees when their racing career is at an end. A top-quality stallion can be enormously lucrative for its owners – stud fees of more than US$100,000 are relatively commonplace for the most coveted stallions.

References

{{Reflist

External links

Racing and Sports Group Race Interactive database

International Cataloguing Standards Committee
Horse racing Horse races in Australia