The Robert J. Frankel Stakes is a Grade III American Thoroughbred horse race for fillies and

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 four ...

s age three and older run over a distance of one and one-eighth miles (9 furlongs) on the turf track held annually in late Decemberat Santa Anita Park in

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 ...

USA 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 Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...

. The event currently offers a purse of $100,000.

History

The inaugural running of the event was on 4 January 1968 as the San Gorgonio Handicap, a sprint over the Downhill turf course over a distance of about six and one-half furlongs for horses that were four-years-old or older. The event was won by Tumble Weed who was trained by US Hall of Fame trainer

Charles E. 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 ...

in a time of 1:13. The event was named after a landmarks in Southern California, known as

San Gorgonio Pass The San Gorgonio Pass, or Banning Pass, is a elevation gap on the rim of the Great Basin between the San Bernardino Mountains to the north and the San Jacinto Mountains to the south. The pass was formed by the San Andreas Fault, a major trans ...

San Gorgonio Mountain San Gorgonio Mountain, also known locally as Mount San Gorgonio, or Old Greyback, is the highest peak in Southern California and the Transverse Ranges at . It is in the San Bernardino Mountains, east of the city of San Bernardino and north-nort ...

. a mountain in the

San Bernardino Mountains The San Bernardino Mountains are a high and rugged mountain range in Southern California in the United States. Situated north and northeast of San Bernardino and spanning two California counties, the range tops out at at San Gorgonio Mountain � ...

and the former town of San Gorgonio now called Beaumont. The following year the event was scheduled as a claiming stakes event held over a distance of miles and was called the San Gorgonio Claiming Stakes. In 1970 the event was not held. In 1976 Santa Anita Track Administration changed the conditions of the event to a handicap for four-year-old fillies and mares and changing the name of the event back to San Gorgonio Handicap. The winner was the seven-year-old Chilean-bred mare Tizna who carried a record weight of 132 lbs to victory by a nose as the 9/5 favorite. In 1977 the event was run twice. Once in January and the second time in December when track administration scheduled the event earlier for the 1977–1978 Racing season. Hence, the event was not held in 1978 when the scheduled back in its January time slot. In 1983 the

American Graded Stakes Committee {{short description, Organization for Thoroughbred racehorse owners and breeders The American Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association (TOBA) based in Lexington, Kentucky is a trade organization for Thoroughbred racehorse owners and breeders. ...

classified the event as Grade III and upgraded the race in 1985 to

Grade II 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 ...

. The event was renamed in 2010 to honor the late

Hall of Fame A hall, wall, or walk of fame is a list of individuals, achievements, or other entities, usually chosen by a group of electors, to mark their excellence or Wiktionary:fame, fame in their field. In some cases, these halls of fame consist of actu ...

trainer

Robert J. Frankel Robert Julian Frankel (July 9, 1941 – November 16, 2009) was an American thoroughbred race horse trainer whom ESPN called "one of the most successful and respected trainers in the history of thoroughbred racing."Privman, Jay"Robert Frankel Dies ...

who had trained eight winners of the event. In 2012 the event was downgraded back to Grade III. The 2016 Robert J. Frankel Stakes lost its Grade III classification when, for safety reasons, the race was switched from the turf course to the dirt track. In 2021 the event was scheduled to be held on the last day of the year but due to wet conditions Santa Anita administration moved the event to New Year's Day. Hence the conditions of the event were for four-year-olds and over.

Records

Time record: * miles: 1:46.40 – Castilla (1983), Invited Guest (1990) Margins: * 15 lengths – Miss Magnetic (1980) 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 ...

: * 5 –

Laffit Pincay Jr. Laffit Alejandro Pincay Jr. (born December 29, 1946, in Panama City, Panama) was once flat racing's winningest all-time jockey, still holding third place many years after his retirement. He competed primarily in the United States. Career Pinca ...

(1971, 1973, 1978, 1987, 1994) * 5 – Chris McCarron (1983, 1991, 1992, 1998, 2002) * 5 – Corey Nakatani (1993, 1996, 1996, 1997, 2016) Most wins by a trainer: * 8 –

(1973, 1996, 1997, 1999, 2001, 2003, 2004, 2007) Most wins by an owner: * 2 –

Sidney Craig Sidney Harvey Craig (March 22, 1932 – July 21, 2008) was an American businessman who was the business partner and husband of weight-loss entrepreneur Jenny Craig. Together, they founded the weight-management company Jenny Craig, Inc. and e ...

(1992, 1998) * 2 – Juddmonte Farms (1996, 2003) * 2 – 3 Plus U Stable (1997, 2001) * 2 –

Stronach Stables Stronach Stables is the North American racing arm of Thoroughbred horse racing owner and breeder, Frank Stronach, who also owns the horse breeding operation Adena Springs. Stronach is also the CEO of the Stronach Group which owns racetracks that i ...

(1994, 2007) * 2 – Abbondanza Racing (2016, 2017)

Winners

''Legend:''

''Notes:''
§ Ran as an entry

External links

2021 Santa Anita Media Guide

References

{{reflist, 2 Graded stakes races in the United States Grade 3 stakes races in the United States Mile category horse races for fillies and mares Horse races in California Recurring sporting events established in 1968 1968 establishments in California Turf races in the United States Santa Anita Park

History

Records

Winners

See also

External links

References