The Wood Memorial Stakes is an American flat

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 held annually in April at

Aqueduct Racetrack Aqueduct Racetrack is a Thoroughbred horse racing facility and casino in the South Ozone Park, Queens, South Ozone Park and Jamaica, Queens, Jamaica neighborhoods of Queens, New York City, United States. Aqueduct is the only racetrack within ...

Ozone Park, Queens Ozone Park is a neighborhood in the southwestern section of the New York City boroughs of New York City, borough of Queens, New York (state), New York, United States. It is next to the Aqueduct Racetrack in South Ozone Park, Queens, South Ozone ...

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

. It is run over a distance of 1 1/8 miles (9 furlongs) on dirt. The Wood Memorial has been run as a Grade II event since 2017. It was a

Grade I In the United Kingdom, a listed building is a structure of particular architectural or historic interest deserving of special protection. Such buildings are placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, H ...

race from 1974 (when grading was first introduced) to 1994 and again from 2002 to 2016. The Wood Memorial is one of the major prep races on the

Road to the Kentucky Derby The Road to the Kentucky Derby is a points system by which horses qualify for a position in the starting gate for the Kentucky Derby. It features dozens of stakes races for 2 and 3-year-old Thoroughbreds – the number and specific races have chang ...

. Between 1930 and 2000, eleven winners of the Wood Memorial went on to win the Kentucky Derby (

Gallant Fox Gallant Fox (March 23, 1927 – November 13, 1954) was a champion American Thoroughbred horse racing, racehorse who is the second winner of the United States Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing, American Triple Crown. In a racing career which la ...

, Twenty Grand, Johnstown,

Count Fleet Count Fleet (March 24, 1940 – December 3, 1973) was a champion American Thoroughbred racehorse who is the sixth winner of the American Triple Crown. He won the Belmont Stakes by a then record margin of twenty-five lengths. After an undefeated ...

Hoop Jr. Hoop Jr. (March 15, 1942 – November 19, 1964) was an American Thoroughbred racehorse best known for winning the 1945 Kentucky Derby. Background Hoop Jr. was a bay horse sired by the French-bred stallion Sir Gallahad, a full brother to Bul ...

Assault In the terminology of law, an assault is the act of causing physical harm or consent, unwanted physical contact to another person, or, in some legal definitions, the threat or attempt to do so. It is both a crime and a tort and, therefore, may ...

Foolish Pleasure Foolish Pleasure (March 23, 1972 – November 17, 1994) was an American bay Thoroughbred race horse who won the 1975 Kentucky Derby. Background Foolish Pleasure was a bay horse bred at Williston, Florida by Waldemar Farms, Inc. He was owned by ...

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 ...

Seattle Slew Seattle Slew (February 15, 1974 – May 7, 2002) was a champion American Thoroughbred horse racing, racehorse who became the tenth winner of the Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing (United States), American Triple Crown (1977). He is one of only ...

, Pleasant Colony and

Fusaichi Pegasus Fusaichi Pegasus (, ; April 12, 1997 – May 23, 2023) was a champion American Thoroughbred racehorse who won the 2000 Kentucky Derby, and subsequently set a record at auction—selling for US$70 million to Coolmore Stud. Background The colt w ...

). Four of them also won the Triple Crown. The most famous loser in the Wood Memorial was

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 horse racing, racehorse who was the ninth winn ...

, who finished third in 1973. The winner of the Wood Memorial has not won the Kentucky Derby since 2000, in part because several became injured in the weeks between the two races. For example, Toby's Corner missed the Derby with lameness in his left hind leg (2011), Eskendereya with a soft tissue injury in his left front leg (2010), I Want Revenge with a ligament injury to his right front ankle (2009) and Buddha with separation of the hoof wall from the laminae of his left front leg (2002). In 2025, both the winner Rodriguez and runner-up Grande were scratched from the Kentucky Derby with foot bruises. The race was named to honor Eugene D. Wood, a

New York State New York, also called New York State, is a state in the northeastern United States. Bordered by New England to the east, Canada to the north, and Pennsylvania and New Jersey to the south, its territory extends into both the Atlantic Ocean and ...

politician and horse racing enthusiast who had been a founder and past president of the old

Jamaica Race Course Jamaica Race Course, also called the Jamaica Racetrack, was an American thoroughbred horse racing facility operated by the Metropolitan Jockey Club in Jamaica, Queens, New York City. History The track opened on April 27, 1903, a day which featu ...

where the race was run until 1960. From 1925 to 1939, the Wood Memorial was run over a distance of one mile and seventy yards, then at miles from 1940 to 1951, after which it was changed to its present miles. All entrants currently carry a weight of 123 lb. The race was run in two divisions in 1944, 1945, 1947, 1974, and 1983.

Records

In 2005, Bellamy Road set a new stakes record of 1:47.16 at the mile distance in winning by lengths for his owner,

George Steinbrenner George Michael Steinbrenner III (July 4, 1930July 13, 2010) was an American businessman who was the principal owner and managing partner of Major League Baseball's New York Yankees from 1973 until his death in 2010. He was the longest-serving own ...

. Most wins by a

jockey A jockey is someone who rides horses in horse racing or steeplechase (horse racing), 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 ...

: * 9 –

Eddie Arcaro George Edward Arcaro (February 19, 1916 – November 14, 1997) was an American Thoroughbred horse racing Hall of Fame jockey who won more American classic races than any other jockey in history and is the only rider to have won the U.S. Triple ...

(1944, 1945, 1947 (2), 1949, 1950, 1956, 1957, 1958) Most wins by a trainer: * 8 – "Sunny Jim" Fitzsimmons (1928, 1930, 1936, 1937, 1938, 1939, 1955, 1957) Most wins by an owner: * 4 – Greentree Stable (1927, 1931, 1944, 1963) * 4 – Wheatley Stable (1928, 1936, 1937, 1957) * 4 – Belair Stable (1930, 1938, 1939, 1955) * 4 –

Cornelius Vanderbilt Whitney Cornelius "Sonny" Vanderbilt Whitney (February 20, 1899 – December 13, 1992) was an American businessman, film producer, government official, writer and philanthropist. He was also a polo player and the owner of a significant stable of Thorough ...

(1935, 1945, 1947, 1956)

Winners

Notes: # In 1956, Golf Ace won but was disqualified and placed 2nd. #In 1962, Admiral's Voyage and Sunrise County finished in a

dead heat A dead heat is a rare situation in various racing sports in which the performances of competitors are judged to be so close that no difference between them can be resolved. The result is declared a tie and the competitors are awarded a joint ra ...

. However, Sunrise County, was disqualified and placed 2nd. #Leroy S. (1984), Cahill Road (1991), Irgun (1994), Coronado's Quest (1998), Buddha (2002), I Want Revenge (2009), Eskendereya (2010), Toby's Corner (2011), and Lord Miles (2023) are recent horses to win the Wood Memorial Stakes, but not run in the

Kentucky Derby The Kentucky Derby () is an American Graded stakes race, Grade I stakes Thoroughbred racing, race run at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky. The race is run by three-year-old Thoroughbreds at a distance of . Colt (horse), Colts and geldin ...

.TVG Trackside Live, April 6th, 2006 edition.

References

History of the Wood Memorial Stakes at the NYRA

External links

Ten Things You Should Know About the Wood Memorial at Hello Race Fans!
{{Road to the Kentucky Derby 1925 establishments in New York City Horse races in New York City Aqueduct Racetrack Jamaica Race Course Flat horse races for three-year-olds Triple Crown Prep Races Grade 2 stakes races in the United States Graded stakes races in the United States Sports competitions in New York City Recurring sporting events established in 1925

Records

Winners

See also

References

External links