The Hollywood Derby is a

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 ...

American

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 ...

held annually in late November/early December. Now held at

Del Mar racetrack The Del Mar Fairgrounds is a event venue in Del Mar, California. The annual San Diego County Fair is held here, which was called the Del Mar Fair from 1984 to 2001. In 1936, the Del Mar Racetrack was built by the Thoroughbred Club with foundin ...

San Diego, California San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the eighth most populous city in the United States ...

, until 2014 it was held at

Hollywood Park Racetrack Hollywood Park was a thoroughbred race course located in Inglewood, California, about 3 miles (5 km) from Los Angeles International Airport and adjacent to the Forum indoor arena. In 1994, the original Hollywood Park Casino was added to the ...

Inglewood, California Inglewood is a city in southwestern Los Angeles County, California, in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. As of the 2020 U.S. Census, the city had a population of 107,762. It was incorporated on February 14, 1908. The city is in the South Bay ...

. The race is open to horses aged three and contested at a mile and an eighth on

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 currently offers a purse of $300,000. Inaugurated in 1938, the race has been a

event since 1973 when grading was first introduced. There was no race from 1942 through 1944 as a result of World War II and it was not run in 2005 as a safety precaution after new grass had been planted on the turf course. It was contested in two divisions from 1981 through 1987. Known as the Westerner Stakes from 1948–1958, the race was held at

Santa Anita Park Santa Anita Park is a Thoroughbred racetrack in Arcadia, California, United States. It offers some of the prominent horse racing events in the United States during early fall, winter and in spring. The track is home to numerous prestigious races ...

in 1949 after a fire destroyed the Hollywood Park grandstand and clubhouse. When Hollywood Park closed in December 2013, the race was transferred to Del Mar. Due to the layout of the turf course at Del Mar, the race was shortened to miles. Only five

fillies 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 ...

have ever won the race: Busher (1945),

Honeymoon A honeymoon is a vacation taken by newlyweds immediately after their wedding, to celebrate their marriage. Today, honeymoons are often celebrated in destinations considered exotic or romantic. In a similar context, it may also refer to the phase ...

(1946),

A Gleam A Gleam (foaled 1949 in Kentucky) was an American Thoroughbred racehorse who set a Hollywood Park Racetrack record with five straight stakes races in 1952. Breeding A Gleam was bred and raced by Calumet Farm. Her sire was British born Blenh ...

(1952), De La Rose (1981) and

Royal Heroine Royal Heroine (1980–2002) was a Hall of Fame Thoroughbred Champion racehorse foaled in Ireland who raced in England and France and then in the United States where she set a North American record for a mile on turf while winning the inaug ...

(1983). In 2014,

California Chrome California Chrome (foaled February 18, 2011) is a champion American Thoroughbred racehorse who won the 2014 Kentucky Derby, Preakness Stakes, and 2016 Dubai World Cup. He was the 2014 and 2016 American Horse of the Year. In 2016, he surpassed ...

accomplished a rare feat when, having won the

Santa Anita Derby The Santa Anita Derby is an American Grade 1 thoroughbred horse race for three-year-olds run each April at Santa Anita Park in Arcadia, California. It is currently run at a distance of miles on the dirt and carries a purse of $400,000. It is on ...

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

Preakness Stakes The Preakness Stakes is an American thoroughbred horse race held on Armed Forces Day which is also the third Saturday in May each year at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, Maryland. It is a Grade I race run over a distance of 9.5 furlongs () on ...

on dirt earlier in the year, he won the Hollywood Derby in his first appearance on the turf. The Hollywood Derby has been contested at various distances on both dirt and turf: * miles on dirt : 1945, 1950, 1976–1980 * miles on dirt : 1938–1941, 1946–1949, 1951–1972 * miles on turf : 1973–1975 * miles on turf : 1981–2002 * miles on turf : 2003 to 2013 * miles on turf: 2014 to present

Records

Speed record: on turf * 1:45.82 –

Super Quercus Super may refer to: Computing * SUPER (computer program), or Simplified Universal Player Encoder & Renderer, a video converter / player * Super (computer science), a keyword in object-oriented programming languages * Super key (keyboard but ...

(1999) (at current distance of 1⅛ miles) * 1:59.35 – Showing Up (2006) (at previous distance of 1¼ miles) * 2:27.80 – Amen II (1973) (at previous distance of 1½ miles) Speed record: on dirt * 1:59.40 – Count of Honor (1956) (at 1¼ miles) * 1:47.40 –

Codex The codex (plural codices ) was the historical ancestor of the modern book. Instead of being composed of sheets of paper, it used sheets of vellum, papyrus, or other materials. The term ''codex'' is often used for ancient manuscript books, with ...

(1980) (at 1⅛ miles) Most wins by a

jockey A jockey is someone who rides horses in horse racing or steeplechase racing, primarily as a profession. The word also applies to camel riders in camel racing. The word "jockey" originated from England and was used to describe the individual ...

: * 8 –

Bill Shoemaker William Lee Shoemaker (August 19, 1931 – October 12, 2003) was an American jockey. For 29 years he held the world record for total professional jockey victories. Early life Referred to as "Bill", "Willie," and "The Shoe", William Lee Sh ...

(1951, 1955, 1957, 1958, 1974, 1976, 1982, 1986) Most wins by a trainer: * 4 –

Charlie Whittingham Charles Edward Whittingham (April 13, 1913 – April 20, 1999) was an American Thoroughbred race horse trainer who is one of the most acclaimed trainers in U.S. racing history. Early career Born in Chula Vista, California, Whittingham began w ...

(1967, 1969, 1986, 1989) Most wins by an

Owner Ownership is the state or fact of legal possession and control over property, which may be any asset, tangible or intangible. Ownership can involve multiple rights, collectively referred to as title, which may be separated and held by different ...

: * 2 –

Louis B. Mayer Louis Burt Mayer (; born Lazar Meir; July 12, 1882 or 1884 or 1885 – October 29, 1957) was a Canadian-American film producer and co-founder of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer studios (MGM) in 1924. Under Mayer's management, MGM became the film industr ...

(1945, 1946) * 2 – Connie M. Ring (1976, 1982) * 2 – Mary Bradley (1986, 1989) * 2 –

Klaravich Stables Seth Andrew Klarman (born May 21, 1957) is an American billionaire investor, hedge fund manager, and author. He is a proponent of value investing. He is the chief executive and portfolio manager of the Baupost Group, a Boston-based private inve ...

(1997, 2016)

Winners

* In 2001, Designed for Luck won but was disqualified for drifting out in the stretch and was set back to fifth.

References

{{Reflist Grade 1 stakes races in the United States Flat horse races for three-year-olds Open middle distance horse races Turf races in the United States Recurring events established in 1938 Del Mar Racetrack Hollywood Park Racetrack