The Hollywood Turf Cup 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-old or older over a distance of one and one-half miles (12

furlong A furlong is a measure of distance in imperial units and United States customary units equal to one eighth of a mile, equivalent to 660 feet, 220 yards, 40 rods, 10 chains or approximately 201 metres. It is now mostly confined to use in hors ...

s) 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 ...

track scheduled annually in late November 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 ...

Del Mar, California Del Mar (; Spanish for "Of the Sea") is a beach town in San Diego County, California, located on the coast of the Pacific Ocean. Established in 1885 as a seaside resort, the city incorporated in 1959. The Del Mar Horse Races are hosted on the De ...

. The event currently carries a purse of $250,000.

History

The inaugural running of the event was on 6 December 1981 under Weight-for-Age conditions with an impressive purse of US500,000 added. The event as planned by West Coast racing administration attracted some fine horses including Europeans who had come to the US to run in the

Washington, D.C. International The Baltimore Washington International Turf Cup is an American Grade III invitational horse race run over one mile. Inaugurated in 1952, it was raced at Laurel Park Racecourse on the turf in Laurel, Maryland, at a distance of miles (12 furlong ...

. The event was won by the Irish-bred

Providential Providential (February 6, 1977 – May 1998) was an Irish-born Thoroughbred racehorse who competed successfully in France and won the most important race on turf in the United States. Bred and raced by Bertram R. Firestone, he was sired by Ru ...

who raced in the US as Providential II and had previously won the

in a star studded field which included John Henry who was the leading stakes winner in the US at the time and started as the 2/5 odds-on favorite. The race was run in two divisions in 1982 at a shorter distance of miles. 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 with the highest status of

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 ...

. John Henry returned to make amends in 1983 to win and become the first racehorse to surpass $4 million in career earnings. In 1985 the distance of the event was returned to its initial distance of miles. In 1991 the winner

Miss Alleged Miss Alleged (1987–2008) was a French Thoroughbred racehorse who was a Champion in the United States and one of only two fillies to ever win the Breeders' Cup Turf. Background Foaled in Kentucky, she was out of the mare, Miss Tusculum. He ...

was the only

filly 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 ...

to ever win this race. Horses who previously ran in the

Breeders' Cup Turf The Breeders' Cup Turf is a Weight for Age Thoroughbred horse race on turf for three-year-olds and up. It is held annually at a different racetrack in the United States or Canada as part of the Breeders' Cup World Championships. The race's current ...

would sometimes run in the Turf Cup since it is the last major turf race of the year. The race was not run in 2005 due to problems with Hollywood Park's grass course not being ready after the turf course was reseeded. The event was not held in 2009 as several high profile events were cancelled in an effort to sustain overnight purses with a shortened meeting of only 27 days. The event was downgraded in 2012 to Grade II. With the closure of Hollywood Park Racetrack in 2013 the event was moved to Del Mar Racetrack.

Records

Speed record: * miles: 2:24.61 – Boboman (2006) * miles: 2:13.40 – The Hague (1982) Margins: *6 lengths – Fraise (1993) Most wins: * 2 –

Alphabatim Alphabatim (27 January 1981 – 2004) was an American-bred, British-trained Thoroughbred racehorse and sire who won at the highest level in both Europe and North America. As a two-year-old in Britain in 1983, he showed great promise, winning t ...

(1984, 1986) * 2 – Lazy Lode (1998, 1999) Most wins by an owner: * 3 –

Juddmonte Farms Juddmonte Farms is a horse breeding farm, owned until his death on 12th January 2021 by Prince Khalid bin Abdullah of Saudi Arabia.National Thoroughbred Racing Association"Juddmonte Farms, Inc.", profile. Retrieved October 16, 2007. Overview Ju ...

(

Prince Khalid Abdullah A prince is a male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or former monarch's family. ''Prince'' is also a title of nobility (often highest), often hereditary, in some European states. Th ...

) (1984, 1986, 2008) 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 –

Chris McCarron Christopher John McCarron (born March 27, 1955, Boston, Massachusetts) is a retired American thoroughbred horse racing Hall of Fame jockey. He mounted his first horse ever at 16.5 years old and was racing professionally by 18. At only 19 years o ...

(1983, 1984, 1989, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1996, 2000) Most wins by a trainer: * 4 – Robert J. Frankel (1997, 2001, 2003, 2008)

Winners

''Legend:''

''Notes:''
§ Ran as an entry
† In 1992, Fraise finished first but officials disqualified him and he was set back to second place for bumping Bien Bien in the stretch.
‡ In 2003, Epicentre won the race but was disqualied for interference in the stretch and set back to third.

External links

2021 Del Mar Media Guide

References

{{reflist, 2 Horse races in California Del Mar Racetrack Graded stakes races in the United States Grade 2 stakes races in the United States Open middle distance horse races Recurring sporting events established in 1981 1981 establishments in California

History

Records

Winners

See also

External links

References