The John Henry Turf Championship Stakes (renamed for John Henry who won it three times) is an 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 ...

run annually during the

Oak Tree Racing Association The Oak Tree Racing Association is an American nonprofit corporation that exists to conduct live thoroughbred horse racing in Southern California. Graded Stakes races at the Oak Tree meet Since Oak Tree Racing moved to Hollywood Park in 2010, some ...

's Autumn Meeting 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 ...

Arcadia, California Arcadia is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States, located about northeast of downtown Los Angeles in the San Gabriel Valley and at the base of the San Gabriel Mountains. It contains a series of adjacent parks consisting of th ...

. It is raced over a distance of one and one-quarter 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 ...

and is one of the final prep races leading to the

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. Once 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 ...

event, it is now a Grade II and open to horses three years old and up. It currently offers a purse of $200,000. Inaugurated as the Oak Tree Stakes in 1969, from 1971 through 1995 it was called the Oak Tree Invitational Stakes, and from 1996 through 1999, the Oak Tree Turf Championship Stakes. From 2000 through 2011 it was called the Clement L. Hirsch Turf Championship Stakes. The race, now named for John Henry, remains at Santa Anita although the Oak Tree Autumn Meeting was held at

Hollywood Park Hollywood Park may refer to: Places United States * Hollywood Memorial Park Cemetery in Los Angeles, California * Hollywood Park, Chicago, a neighborhood in North Park, Chicago, Illinois * Hollywood Park, Inglewood, an entertainment complex and m ...

until its closure in December, 2013. From 1969 through 1994 it was raced at a distance of miles. In winning the 2008 edition,

Red Giant A red giant is a luminous giant star of low or intermediate mass (roughly 0.3–8 solar masses ()) in a late phase of stellar evolution. The outer atmosphere is inflated and tenuous, making the radius large and the surface temperature around or ...

set a world record time of 1:57.16 for miles on turf.

Records

Time record: (at current miles distance) * 1:57.16 –

(2008) Most wins: * 3 – John Henry (1980, 1981, 1982) Most wins by an owner: * 3 – Dotsam Stable (1980, 1981, 1982) 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 ...

(1971, 1972, 1975, 1976, 1977, 1978, 1981, 1982) Most wins by a trainer: * 9 –

Charles Whittingham Charles Whittingham (16 June 1767 – 5 January 1840) was an English printer. Biography He was born at Caludon or Calledon, Warwickshire, the son of a farmer, and was apprenticed to a Coventry printer and bookseller. In 1789 he set up a small ...

(1970, 1971, 1972, 1974, 1975, 1976, 1978, 1979, 1986)

Winners

± In 1987 the winning time may have been affected because the race was started on the backstretch instead of from its normal hillside position.
† In 1996, Bon Point finished first but was disqualified and set back to fifth place.
‡ In 2010 run at Hollywood Park.

Notes

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References

The Clement L. Hirsch Turf Championship at Pedigree Query
Open middle distance horse races Grade 1 turf stakes races in the United States Horse races in California 1969 establishments in California Turf races in the United States Santa Anita Park Sports in Los Angeles County, California Recurring sporting events established in 1969