The Bay Shore Stakes is a Grade III

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

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-year-olds at a distance of seven furlongs on the dirt run annually in early April at Aqueduct Racetrack in

Ozone Park, Queens Ozone Park is a neighborhood in the southwestern section of the New York City borough of Queens, New York, United States. It is next to the Aqueduct Racetrack in South Ozone Park, a popular spot for Thoroughbred racing and home to the Resorts W ...

, New York. The event currently offers a purse of $200,000.

History

The event was named for the resort town of

Bay Shore, New York Bay Shore is a hamlet and census-designated place (CDP) in the Town of Islip, New York, United States. It is situated on the South Shore of Long Island, adjoining the Great South Bay. The population of the CDP was 29,244 at the time of the 2020 ...

. The name was once an event with the same name,

Bay Shore Handicap The Bay Shore Handicap is a discontinued Thoroughbred horse race run from 1925 through 1955 at Aqueduct Racetrack in Queens, New York City. The race was open to horses age three and older and run on dirt. From 1956 to 1959 there was no Bay Shore ...

, which was for three-year-olds and older and held in September. That event ended in 1955 with the closing of the old Aqueduct track. The track was closed until it was reconstructed in 1959. According to

New York Racing Association The New York Racing Association, Inc. (NYRA) is the not-for-profit corporation that operates the three largest Thoroughbred horse racing tracks in the state of New York, United States: Aqueduct Racetrack in South Ozone Park, Queens; Belmont Park i ...

the new event was inaugurated on 13 April 1960 as a race with an old name – Bay Shore Handicap for three-year-olds at a distance of one mile. The following year the name of the event was changed to the Bay Shore Stakes. In 1964 the distance of the event was decreased to seven furlongs. The event began impacting the paths the three year old would take towards the U.S Triple Crown. In 1967, the winner Damascus continued his outstanding form winning the

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 () o ...

and Belmont Stakes and capturing a host of awards including U.S. Champion three-year-old colt, US Champion Handicap Horse and becoming US Horse of the Year. In 1968

Reviewer A review is an evaluation of a publication, product, service, or company or a critical take on current affairs in literature, politics or culture. In addition to a critical evaluation, the review's author may assign the work a rating to indi ...

carried a record 130 pounds to victory in the first division of the event which was split. The 1970 US Champion Two-Year-Old Colt, Hoist The Flag won this event in 1971 with a new track record of 1:21 flat in what would be his last start as a career ending training incident forced a premature retirement. In 1973 the first year the classification system was enacted, the event was set with Grade III status. Arguably, the most famous horse to have won this event was the 1973 winner

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 ...

who won the race after an objection claim by lengths, later that year becoming the U.S Triple Crown champion - the first after 25 years. In 1976

Bold Forbes Bold Forbes (March 31, 1973 – August 9, 2000) was a champion thoroughbred racehorse, winner of the 1976 Kentucky Derby and 1976 Belmont Stakes. Background Bold Forbes was a bay horse bred in Kentucky by Lee Eaton. Bold Forbes' dam Comely Nel ...

set a new stakes record for the event in 1:20. Two starts later

would win the Kentucky Derby and be crowned the U.S. Champion three-year-old colt. The event has been run at a shorter distance of 6 furlongs in 1977, 1978 and 1984 and on the inter track in 1994. The race has been run in split divisions in 1962, 1968, 1975, and 1986. The event was scheduled for 13 March 1993 but postponed twice due to bad weather before finally being cancelled. In 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States, Aqueduct closed their track and the event was cancelled.

Records

Speed record: *7 furlongs – 1:20.54 Limit Out (1998) Margins: * lengths - Houston (1989) Most wins by a jockey: * 5 –

John Velazquez John R. Velazquez (born November 24, 1971) is a Puerto Rican jockey in Thoroughbred horse racing. He began his career in Puerto Rico and moved to New York in 1990. In 2004 and 2005 he was the United States Champion Jockey by earnings and both ye ...

(1994, 1996, 2003, 2004, 2019) Most wins by a trainer: * 3 – Stanley R. Shapoff (1974, 1988, 1991) * 3 – D. Wayne Lukas (1985, 1989, 1990) * 3 – Chad C. Brown (2014, 2015, 2017) * 3 – Todd A. Pletcher (2004, 2018, 2022) Most wins by an owner: * 3 – Robert B. Cohen (1974, 1988, 1991)

Winners

''Notes:''
† Run on the Inner dirt track

References

{{reflist, 2 1960 establishments in New York City Horse races in New York City Aqueduct Racetrack Flat horse races for three-year-olds Graded stakes races in the United States Grade 3 stakes races in the United States Recurring sporting events established in 1960

History

Records

Winners

See also

References