The Champagne Stakes is an American

Grade I In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...

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-old horses. The race is run at a distance of one mile on the dirt at Belmont Park in October each year. Although the race is open to both colts and fillies, in practice it is New York's premier race for two-year-old colts and fillies enter the Frizette Stakes instead. The race is a

Road to the Kentucky Derby The Road to the Kentucky Derby is a points system by which horses qualify for a position in the starting gate for the Kentucky Derby. It features dozens of stakes races for 2 and 3-year-old Thoroughbreds – the number and specific races have chang ...

Prep Season qualifying race. The winner receives 10 points toward qualifying for the Kentucky Derby. The race is also a part of the

Breeders' Cup Challenge The Breeders' Cup Challenge is a series of Thoroughbred horse races in which the winner earns an automatic spot in a specified Breeders' Cup race. The challenge races change somewhat each year. The Challenge series began in 2007 with 24 "Win and Y ...

series. The winner automatically qualifies for the

Breeders' Cup Juvenile The Breeders' Cup Juvenile is a Thoroughbred horse race for 2-year-old colts and geldings raced on dirt. It is held annually in late October or early November at a different racetrack in the United States or Canada as part of the Breeders' Cup W ...

. The race was first run in 1867, and it is the oldest race of its kind in the United States. It was given the same name as the British Champagne Stakes which has been run annually since 1823 at the Doncaster Racecourse in

South Yorkshire South Yorkshire is a ceremonial county, ceremonial and metropolitan county, metropolitan county in the Yorkshire and Humber Region of England. The county has four council areas which are the cities of City of Doncaster, Doncaster and City of Sh ...

, England. There was no Champagne Stakes run from 1910 through 1913, due to a legislated ban by the

State of New York New York, officially the State of New York, is a state in the Northeastern United States. It is often called New York State to distinguish it from its largest city, New York City. With a total area of , New York is the 27th-largest U.S. state ...

on parimutuel wagering, and no race was held in 1956. Notable past winners who have gone on to success as three-year-olds or older include U.S. Triple Crown champions

Seattle Slew Seattle Slew (February 15, 1974 – May 7, 2002) was a champion American Thoroughbred racehorse who became the tenth winner of the American Triple Crown (1977). He is one of only two horses to have won the Triple Crown while being undefeated in ...

Count Fleet Count Fleet (March 24, 1940 – December 3, 1973) was a champion American Thoroughbred racehorse who is the sixth winner of the American Triple Crown. He won the Belmont Stakes by a then record margin of twenty-five lengths. After an undefeated ...

, and

Secretariat Secretariat may refer to: * Secretariat (administrative office) * Secretariat (horse) Secretariat (March 30, 1970 – October 4, 1989), also known as Big Red, was a champion American thoroughbred racehorse who is the ninth winner of the Ame ...

however; Secretariat was disqualified from the race because of a questionable interference call which is still debatable today. Others such as

Ben Brush Ben Brush (1893–1918) was a champion American Thoroughbred racehorse who won the 1896 Kentucky Derby. Walter Vosburgh, for whom the Vosburgh Stakes is named, said Bramble was "a breed as tough as pine nuts." On May 6, 1896, Bramble and Rose ...

, Colin,

Sarazen Sarazen (1921–1940) was an American National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame, Hall of Fame Eclipse Award, Champion Thoroughbred horse racing, racehorse. Owned by Phil T. Chinn, Colonel Phil T. Chinn's Himyar Stud, Sarazen won his first three ...

Alsab Alsab (1939–1963) was an American Hall of Fame Thoroughbred racehorse. Background Alsab was bred in Kentucky by Thomas Piatt. His sire was Good Goods, and his dam was Winds Chant. Buyers were not interested in him, and Alsab was sold in 1940 ...

Grey Lag Grey Lag (1918–1942) was a Thoroughbred race horse born in Kentucky and bred by John E. Madden. At his Hamburg Place near Lexington, Kentucky, Maddon had a good stallion called Star Shoot which he bred to all of his mares. Out of a failed r ...

, Buckpasser,

Riva Ridge Riva Ridge (April 13, 1969 – April 21, 1985) was a Thoroughbred racehorse, the winner of the Kentucky Derby and Belmont Stakes in 1972. Often remembered simply as a stablemate of Secretariat, Riva Ridge was a successful racehorse in his own rig ...

Foolish Pleasure Foolish Pleasure (March 23, 1972 – November 17, 1994) was an American bay Thoroughbred race horse who won the 1975 Kentucky Derby. Background Foolish Pleasure was a bay horse bred at Williston, Florida by Waldemar Farms, Inc. He was owned by J ...

Alydar Alydar (March 23, 1975 – November 15, 1990) was an American Thoroughbred race horse and sire. A chestnut colt, he was most famous for finishing a close second to Affirmed in all three races of the 1978 Triple Crown. With each successive ...

Spectacular Bid Spectacular Bid (February 17, 1976 – June 9, 2003) was a champion American Thoroughbred racehorse who won the 1979 Kentucky Derby and Preakness Stakes and holds the world record for the fastest 1 1/4 miles on the dirt. He won 26 of his 30 r ...

, and

Easy Goer Easy Goer (March 21, 1986 – May 12, 1994) was an American Champion Hall of Fame Thoroughbred racehorse known for earning American Champion Two-Year-Old Colt honors in 1988 and defeating 1989 American Horse of the Year Sunday Silence in t ...

, all of whom are now in the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame.

ran the best

Beyer Speed Figure The Beyer Speed Figure is a system for rating the performance of Thoroughbred racehorses in North America designed in the early 1970s by Andrew Beyer, the syndicated horse racing columnist for The Washington Post. First published in book form in 1 ...

performance (in the 1988 Champagne Stakes) by any 2-year-old since Beyer racing figures were first published. The 1880 winner was Lady Rosebery, a horse owned by August Belmont, Sr. and named to honor England's

Hannah Primrose, Countess of Rosebery Hannah Primrose, Countess of Rosebery (''née'' de Rothschild; 27 July 1851 – 19 November 1890) was the daughter of Mayer Amschel de Rothschild, Baron Mayer de Rothschild and his wife Juliana (''née'' Cohen (surname), Cohen). After inh ...

whose family was prominent in British racing. Similarly, the 1950 winner was Uncle Miltie, a horse given the nickname of the famous comedian and New York City native, Milton Berle. The inaugural running of the Champagne Stakes took place in 1867 at

Jerome Park Racetrack Jerome Park Racetrack was an American thoroughbred horse racing facility from 1866 until 1894. It was located in a part of Westchester County, New York that was annexed into the Bronx in 1874. Jerome Park Racetrack was the home of the Belmont Sta ...

prior where it remained through 1889. Shifted to the

Morris Park Racecourse Morris Park Racecourse was an American Thoroughbred horse race, thoroughbred horse racing facility from 1889 to 1904. It was located in a part of Westchester County, New York that was annexed into the Bronx in 1895 and later developed as the neighb ...

facility, it was held there through 1904. Moved to its present home at Belmont Park for the 1905 racing season, it was run at the Aqueduct Racetrack in 1959, from 1963 to 1967, and again in 1984. Over the years, the Champagne Stakes has been raced over a variety of distances: * Six furlongs : 1871–1889 * Seven furlongs : 1891–1904 * 165 feet short of seven furlongs (Widener Course) : 1905–1932 * Six and one-half furlongs (Widener Course) : 1933–1939 * One mile : 1940–1983, 1985–1993; 2005 to present * One and one-eighth miles : 1984 * One and one-sixteenth miles : 1994–2004

Records

Speed record: * 1:34.20 –

Devil's Bag Devil's Bag (1981–2005) was an American champion Thoroughbred racehorse who was syndicated as a two-year-old for US$36 million, the highest price for any 2-year-old in racing history. Background Bred by Canadian E. P. Taylor at his Windfi ...

(1983) * 1:34.40 –

(1976) Most wins by an owner: * 5 – Calumet Farm (1933, 1936, 1944, 1949, 1977) Most wins by a jockey: * 5 –

Braulio Baeza Braulio Baeza (born March 26, 1940) is an American Thoroughbred horse racing Hall of Fame jockey and one of the master Thoroughbred jockeys of our time. In 1963, he was the first Latin American jockey to win the Kentucky Derby. Baeza began his ra ...

(1964, 1965, 1966, 1967, 1975) Most wins by a trainer: * 6 – Todd A. Pletcher (2004, 2006, 2010, 2012, 2013, 2014)

Winners of the Champagne Stakes since 1946

*In 1970, Hoist The Flag won the race but was disqualified and set back to last. *In 1972,

won the race but was disqualified and set back to second. *Due to a large field, in 1973 the race was run in two divisions.

Earlier winners

*1945 – Marine Victory *1944 –

Pot O'Luck Pot O'Luck (1942) was an American Thoroughbred racehorse bred and raced by the renowned Calumet Farm of Lexington, Kentucky. He was sired by Chance Play, the 1927 retrospective American Horse of the Year and 1935 Leading sire in North America. O ...

*1943 – Pukka Gin *1942 –

*1941 –

*1940 – Monday Lunch *1939 – Andy K. *1938 – Porter's Mite *1937 –

Menow Menow (1935–1964) was an American Thoroughbred racehorse. He won several important races in 1937, when he was voted American Champion Two-Year-Old Male Horse. Background Bred and raced by Hal Price Headley, Menow was foaled on May 19, late ...

*1936 – Privileged *1935 – Brevity *1934 – Balladier *1933 – Hadagal *1932 – Dynastic *1931 – Sweeping Light *1930 –

Mate Mate may refer to: Science * Mate, one of a pair of animals involved in: ** Mate choice, intersexual selection ** Mating * Multi-antimicrobial extrusion protein, or MATE, an efflux transporter family of proteins Person or title * Friendship ...

*1929 – Whichone *1928 – Healy *1927 – Oh Say *1926 – Valorous *1925 – Bubbling Over *1924 – Beatrice *1923 –

*1922 – Nassau *1921 – Surf Rider *1920 –

*1919 – Cleopatra *1918 – War Pennant *1917 – Lanius *1916 – Vivid *1915 – Chicle *1914 – Paris *1913 – Race Not Run *1912 – Race Not Run *1911 – Race Not Run *1910 – Race Not Run *1909 – Fauntleroy *1908 –

Helmet A helmet is a form of protective gear worn to protect the head. More specifically, a helmet complements the skull in protecting the human brain. Ceremonial or symbolic helmets (e.g., a policeman's helmet in the United Kingdom) without protect ...

*1907 – Colin *1906 – Kentucky Beau *1905 – Perverse *1904 – Oiseau *1903 – Stalwart *1902 – Meltonian *1901 – Endurance by Right *1900 – Garry Herrmann *1899 – Kilmarnock *1898 – Lothario *1897 –

Plaudit Plaudit (1895–1919) was an American Thoroughbred racehorse. A descendant of English Triple Crown champion, West Australian, he was bred by Dr. John D. Neet, owner of Kindergarten Stud at Versailles, Kentucky. Plaudit is best known for win ...

*1896 – The Friar *1895 –

*1894 – Salvation *1893 – Sir Excess *1892 – Ramapo *1891 –

Azra Azra was a Croatian and Yugoslav rock band that was one of the most popular acts of the Yugoslav new wave music of the 1980s. Azra was formed in 1977 by its frontman Branimir "Johnny" Štulić. The other two members of the original line-up we ...

*1890 – Hoodlum *1889 – June Day *1888 – Radiant *1887 – Cascade *1886 – Connemarra *1885 – Dew Drop *1884 – Eachus *1883 – Leo *1882 – Breeze *1881 – Macduff *1880 – Lady Rosebery *1879 – Carita *1878 – Belinda *1877 – Albert *1876 – Bombast *1875 – Virginius *1874 – Hyder Ali *1873 – Grinstead *1872 – Minnie W. *1871 – Grey Planet *1870 – Madam Dudley *1869 – Finesse *1868 – Cottrill *1867 – Sarah B.

References

{{reflist 1867 establishments in New York (state) Horse races in New York (state) Belmont Park Morris Park Racecourse Flat horse races for two-year-olds Breeders' Cup Challenge series Grade 1 stakes races in the United States Graded stakes races in the United States Recurring sporting events established in 1867

Records

Winners of the Champagne Stakes since 1946

Earlier winners

See also

References