The Twilight Derby is a

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 ...

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 ...

for three years olds over the distance of one-and-one-eighth 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 ...

scheduled annually in October 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 ...

. The event currently carries a purse of $200,000.

History

The event was inaugurated on 18 October 1969 as the Volante Handicap at 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 ...

meeting at Santa Anita Park and was won by the Mrs.

Howard B. Keck Howard Brighton Keck (September 20, 1913 – December 14, 1996) was an American businessman. He was also a Thoroughbred horse racing, racehorse owner and breeder, and the owner of an auto racing team that twice won the Indianapolis 500. Early ...

's entry Tell who was ridden by US Hall of Fame jockey

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 ...

carrying the imposing weight of 130 pounds by of a length over Noholme Jr. in a time of 1:46. The event was named for Elias Jackson "Lucky" Baldwin's 1885

American Derby The American Derby is a Thoroughbred horse race in the United States run annually at Arlington Park in Arlington Heights, Illinois. The inaugural American Derby was held at Chicago's old Washington Park Race Track on the city's South Side and rac ...

winner, Volante, who was ridden to victory by jockey

Isaac Burns Murphy Isaac Burns Murphy (January 6, 1861 – February 16, 1896) was an American Hall of Fame jockey, who is considered to be one of the greatest riders in American Thoroughbred horse racing history. Murphy won three runnings of the Kentucky Derby and ...

. Lucky Baldwin had built the original Santa Anita Racetrack Track in 1907 and Volante was buried at the track. When the grading of races began as a

Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association {{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. ...

project in 1973 the event was classified as Grade III, however, the event was not held that year due to a strike by pari-mutual clerks. In 1988 and 1989 the event was upgraded to Grade II before returning to Grade III. In 1996 the event was one again upgraded to Grade II. In 1997 the event was renamed to the Oak Tree Derby after the

. In 2012 with the

abandoning the Santa Anita Track the event was renamed to the Twilight Derby. The event has been held on the undercard of the Saturday

Breeders' Cup The Breeders' Cup World Championships is an annual series of Grade I Thoroughbred horse races, operated by Breeders' Cup Limited, a company formed in 1982. From its inception in 1984 through 2006, it was a single-day event; starting in 2007, ...

card in 2008, 2009, 2016 and 2019.

Records

Time record: * 1:44.48 – The Usual Q.T. (2009) Margins: * lengths - Daytona (IRE) (2007) Most wins by an owner: * 2 –

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 ...

(1977, 1979) 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 ...

: * 6 – Gary Stevens (1986, 1990, 1998, 1999, 2015, 2017) Most wins by a trainer: * 5 –

(1969, 1974, 1977, 1979, 1989)

Winners

''Legend:''

''Notes:''
§ Ran as an entry
‡ In 1973 the Volante Handicap was scheduled to be held on Saturday, 7 October 1973, opening day of the Oak Tree Racing Association's meeting at Santa Anita but was cancelled due to a three-day strike by the pari-mutuel clerks.

References

{{reflist, 2 Horse races in California Santa Anita Park Graded stakes races in the United States Grade 2 stakes races in the United States Flat horse races for three-year-olds Turf races in the United States Recurring sporting events established in 1969 1969 establishments in California

History

Records

Winners

See also

References