The Cradle Stakes is an American flat

Thoroughbred horse race 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 ...

for two-year-olds held at

Belterra Park Belterra Park, formerly known as River Downs, is a racino located in Anderson Township, Hamilton County, Ohio, just outside the southeast limits of Cincinnati. It is owned by Gaming and Leisure Properties and operated by Boyd Gaming. History ...

(formerly River Downs) in

Cincinnati, Ohio Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state line wit ...

. Open to two-year-olds, it is run over a distance of miles on the

turf Sod, also known as turf, is the upper layer of soil with the grass growing on it that is often harvested into rolls. In Australian and British English, sod is more commonly known as ''turf'', and the word "sod" is limited mainly to agricultu ...

. It was originally created as a dirt race for juveniles in 1977. Miller Genuine Draft sponsored the race from the beginning and, until 2009, it was the longest continuously sponsored Thoroughbred race in the United States. During the 1980s, the Cradle Stakes grew to become the richest race for 2-year-olds in Ohio. One notable winner in that decade was Spend a Buck, who won the 1984 Cradle before going on to win the

Kentucky Derby The Kentucky Derby is a horse race held annually in Louisville, Kentucky, United States, almost always on the first Saturday in May, capping the two-week-long Kentucky Derby Festival. The competition is a Grade I stakes race for three-year ...

and Horse of the Year honors in 1985. The Cradle Stakes was moved to the turf in 2007 to serve as a prep for the new

Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf The Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf is an American Thoroughbred horse race for two-year-old horses, run on a grass course at a distance of one mile. It is part of the Breeders' Cup World Championships, the ''de facto'' year-end championship for North ...

race. River Downs management put the Cradle, and its

filly A filly is a female horse that is too young to be called a mare. There are two specific definitions in use: *In most cases, a ''filly'' is a female horse under four years old. *In some nations, such as the United Kingdom and the United States, t ...

counterpart the Bassinet, on hiatus after 2010 as part of a new contract with horsemen in an effort to maintain daily purses. In July 2022, Belterra management announced that both races would return in September of that year.

Winners

* ‡ In 2009, the race was run off the turf.

References

{{reflist
Equibase Profile - Cradle Stakes
1977 establishments in Ohio Horse races in Ohio Flat horse races for two-year-olds Turf races in the United States Previously graded stakes races in the United States Ungraded stakes races in the United States Recurring sporting events established in 1977