Acorn Stakes
| Grade I race | |
| Location | Belmont Park Elmont, New York |
|---|---|
| Inaugurated | 1931 |
| Race type | Thoroughbred – Flat racing |
| Race information | |
| Distance | 1+1⁄16 miles (8.5 furlongs) |
| Surface | Dirt |
| Track | left-handed |
| Qualification | Three-year-old fillies |
| Weight | Assigned |
| Purse | $500,000 (2023) |
The Acorn Stakes is an American Grade I race at Belmont Park in Elmont, New York for three-year-old Thoroughbred fillies. It is raced on dirt over a distance of one mile and a sixteenth with a current purse of $500,000. It is the first leg of the US Triple Tiara and is followed by the Coaching Club American Oaks then the Alabama Stakes. The filly must win all three races to win the Triple Tiara, as well as the third leg of the "National" Triple Tiara (Kentucky Oaks and George E. Mitchell Stakes are the others).[1]
The Acorn Stakes was run at Aqueduct Racetrack from 1960 to 1967 and 1969 to 1975. There were two divisions in 1951, 1970 and 1974. There was a dead heat for first place in 1954 and again in 1956. The race was run at one mile from its inception until 2022. In 2023, the New York Racing Association lengthened the race to 1+1⁄16 miles.[1] The 2024 Acorn was held at Saratoga Race Course at 1+1⁄8 miles due to construction at Belmont Park.[2]
Historic notes
The inaugural running of the Acorn Stakes took place on May 16, 1931 and was won by Baba Kenney. The filly was owned by Edward R. Bradley and trained by future U.S. Racing Hall of Fame inductee, Herbert J. Thompson.[3]
Gallorette won the 1945 running of the Acorn and went on to earn American Champion Older Female Horse honors in 1946 and a career that would see her induction into the U. S. Racing Hall of Fame in 1962. [4]
Ruffian, the ill-fated future Hall of Fame inductee, got her eighth straight career win in the 1975 edition of the Acorn. She did it in a new stakes record time, continuing her streak of either beating or equaling the record in every one of her major race victories, those being the Fashion, Astoria, Sorority and the Spinaway Stakes.[5]
Riding her father's filly Mom's Command, in 1985 Abigail Fuller became the first female jockey to win the Acorn Stakes.[6] It would be another 28 years before a female rider accomplished the feat when Rosie Napravnik won the 2013 edition aboard Midnight Lucky .[7]
Records
Speed record (at previous one mile distance):
- 1:32.55 – Gamine (2020)
Most wins by an owner:
- 6 – Calumet Farm (1941, 1943, 1944, 1956*, 1979)
- 5 – Wheatley Stable (1933, 1939, 1955, 1960, 1964)
*Two horses owned by Calumet Farm finished in a dead heat for first in 1956
Most wins by a jockey:
- 5 – Eddie Arcaro (1945, 1946, 1948, 1955, 1961)
- 5 – Mike E. Smith (1993, 1994, 1996, 1998, 2017)
- 5 - John R. Velazquez (2000, 2007, 2008, 2015, 2020)
Winners
| Year |
Winner |
Age |
Jockey |
Trainer |
Owner |
Dist. (Miles) |
Time |
Win$ |
Gr. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | Thorpedo Anna | 3 | Brian Hernandez Jr. | Kenneth G. McPeek | Nader Alaali, Mark Edwards, Judy B. Hicks & Magdalena Racing | 1+1⁄8 m | 1:49.02 | $275,000 | G1 |
| 2023 | Pretty Mischievous | 3 | Tyler Gaffalione | Brendan Walsh | Godolphin | 1+1⁄16 m | 1:43.33 | $275,000 | G1 |
| 2022 | Matareya | 3 | Flavien Prat | Brad H. Cox | Godolphin | 1 m | 1:35.77 | $275,000 | G1 |
| 2021 | Search Results | 3 | Javier Castellano | Chad Brown | Klaravich Stables | 1 m | 1:35.50 | $275,000 | G1 |
| 2020 | Gamine | 3 | John Velazquez | Bob Baffert | Michael Lund Petersen | 1 m | 1:32.55 | $165,000 | G1 |
| 2019 | Guarana | 3 | José Ortiz | Chad C. Brown | Three Chimneys Farm | 1 m | 1:33.58 | $375,000 | G1 |
| 2018 | Monomoy Girl | 3 | Florent Geroux | Brad H. Cox | Stuart Grant, Michael Dubb, Monomoy Stables, LLC | 1 m | 1:34.10 | $375,000 | G1 |
| 2017 | Abel Tasman | 3 | Mike E. Smith | Bob Baffert | China Horse Club International Ltd./Clearsky Farms | 1 m | 1:35.37 | $375,000 | G1 |
| 2016 | Carina Mia | 3 | Julien Leparoux | William Mott | Three Chimneys Farm | 1 m | 1:34.97 | $375,000 | G1 |
| 2015 | Curalina | 3 | John Velazquez | Todd Pletcher | Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners (Aron Wellman et al.) | 1 m | 1:35.13 | $375,000 | G1 |
| 2014 | Sweet Reason | 3 | Irad Ortiz Jr | Leah Gyarmati | Treadway Racing Stable | 1 m | 1:34.98 | $400,000 | G1 |
| 2013 | Midnight Lucky | 3 | Rosie Napravnik | Bob Baffert | Mike Pegram, Karl Watson & Paul Weitman | 1 m | 1:35.11 | $180,000 | G1 |
| 2012 | Contested | 3 | Javier Castellano | Bob Baffert | Natalie J. Baffert | 1 m | 1:34.61 | $180,000 | G1 |
| 2011 | It's Tricky | 3 | Eddie Castro | Kiaran McLaughlin | Darley Stable | 1 m | 1:35.48 | $180,000 | G1 |
| 2010 | Champagne d'Oro | 3 | Martin Garcia | Eric Guillot | Southern Equine Stables (Eric Guillot & Mike Moreno) | 1 m | 1:37.44 | $180,000 | G1 |
| 2009 | Gabby's Golden Gal | 3 | Javier Castellano | Bob Baffert | Arnold Zetcher | 1 m | 1:34.79 | $180,000 | G1 |
| 2008 | Zaftig | 3 | John Velazquez | James A. Jerkens | Susan Moore et al. | 1 m | 1:34.50 | $150,000 | G1 |
| 2007 | Cotton Blossom | 3 | John R. Velazquez | Todd A. Pletcher | Dogwood Stable | 1 m | 1:34.70 | $150,000 | G1 |
| 2006 | Bushfire | 3 | Alex Solis | Eddie Kenneally | Ron & Ricki Rashinski | 1 m | 1:35.89 | $150,000 | G1 |
| 2005 | Round Pond | 3 | Stewart Elliott | John Servis | Fox Hill Farms, Inc. (Rick Porter) | 1 m | 1:35.20 | $150,000 | G1 |
| 2004 | Island Sand | 3 | Terry J. Thompson | J. Larry Jones | James Osbrone | 1 m | 1:34.80 | $150,000 | G1 |
| 2003 | Bird Town | 3 | Edgar Prado | Nick Zito | Marylou Whitney Stable | 1 m | 1:35.20 | $150,000 | G1 |
| 2002 | You | 3 | Jerry Bailey | Robert J. Frankel | Edmund A. Gann | 1 m | 1:34.00 | $150,000 | G1 |
| 2001 | Forest Secrets | 3 | Chris McCarron | John Ward Jr. | Debby M. Oxley | 1 m | 1:34.80 | $150,000 | G1 |
| 2000 | Finder's Fee | 3 | John Velazquez | C. R. McGaughey III | Ogden Phipps | 1 m | 1:37.20 | $120,000 | G1 |
| 1999 | Three Ring | 3 | Jerry Bailey | Edward Plesa Jr. | Barry K. Schwartz | 1 m | 1:36.00 | $150,000 | G1 |
| 1998 | Jersey Girl | 3 | Mike E. Smith | Todd A. Pletcher | Ackerley Bros. Farm | 1 m | 1:36.20 | $90,000 | G1 |
| 1997 | Sharp Cat | 3 | Gary Stevens | D. Wayne Lukas | The Thoroughbred Corp. | 1 m | 1:34.40 | $90,000 | G1 |
| 1996 | Star de Lady Ann | 3 | Mike E. Smith | William W. Perry | John D. Murphy | 1 m | 1:34.60 | $90,000 | G1 |
| 1995 | Cat's Cradle | 3 | Chris Antley | David Hofmans | Georgia B. Ridder | 1 m | 1:37.40 | $90,000 | G1 |
| 1994 | Inside Information | 3 | Mike E. Smith | C. R. McGaughey III | Ogden Mills Phipps | 1 m | 1:34.26 | $90,000 | G1 |
| 1993 | Sky Beauty | 3 | Mike E. Smith | H. Allen Jerkens | Georgia E. Hofmann | 1 m | 1:35.40 | $90,000 | G1 |
| 1992 | Prospectors Delite | 3 | Pat Day | Neil J. Howard | James Elkins, W. S. Farish III & W. Temple Webber | 1 m | 1:35.00 | $113,400 | G1 |
| 1991 | Meadow Star | 3 | Jerry Bailey | LeRoy Jolley | Carl Icahn | 1 m | 1:37.40 | $103,680 | G1 |
| 1990 | Stella Madrid | 3 | Ángel Cordero Jr. | D. Wayne Lukas | Peter M. Brant | 1 m | 1:36.00 | $104,580 | G1 |
| 1989 | Open Mind | 3 | Ángel Cordero Jr. | D. Wayne Lukas | Eugene V. Klein | 1 m | 1:35.40 | $111,960 | G1 |
| 1988 | Aptostar | 3 | Robbie Davis | H. Allen Jerkens | Centennial Farms (Donald Little) | 1 m | 1:34.80 | $109,980 | G1 |
| 1987 | Grecian Flight | 3 | Craig Perret | Joseph H. Pierce Jr. | Henry C. Lindh | 1 m | 1:35.20 | $113,580 | G1 |
| 1986 | Lotka | 3 | Jerry Bailey | Woody Stephens | Henryk de Kwiatkowski | 1 m | 1:35.20 | $109,080 | G1 |
| 1985 | Mom's Command | 3 | Abigail Fuller | Edward T. Allard | Peter D. Fuller | 1 m | 1:35.80 | $113,040 | G1 |
| 1984 | Miss Oceana | 3 | Eddie Maple | Woody Stephens | Newstead Farm | 1 m | 1:35.80 | $108,720 | G1 |
| 1983 | Ski Goggle | 3 | Chris McCarron | A. Thomas Doyle | Zenya Yoshida | 1 m | 1:35.00 | $69,360 | G1 |
| 1982 | Cupecoy's Joy | 3 | Angel Santiago | Alfredo Callejas | Ri-Ma-Ro Stables (Robert DeFilippis) & Robert Perez | 1 m | 1:34.20 | $51,750 | G1 |
| 1981 | Heavenly Cause | 3 | Laffit Pincay Jr. | Woody Stephens | Ryehill Farm (Jim & Eleanor Ryan) | 1 m | 1:35.20 | $50,850 | G1 |
| 1980 | Bold 'n Determined | 3 | Ed Delahoussaye | Neil Drysdale | Saron Stable | 1 m | 1:36.80 | $50,400 | G1 |
| 1979 | Davona Dale | 3 | Jorge Velásquez | John M. Veitch | Calumet Farm | 1 m | 1:36.00 | $50,130 | G1 |
| 1978 | Tempest Queen | 3 | Jorge Velásquez | Lou Rondinello | Darby Dan Farm | 1 m | 1:35.40 | $31,920 | G1 |
| 1977 | Bring Out The Band | 3 | Don Brumfield | James W. Murphy | Hickory Tree Stable | 1 m | 1:36.80 | $33,690 | G1 |
| 1976 | Dearly Precious | 3 | Jorge Velásquez | Stephen A. DiMauro | Richard E. Bailey | 1 m | 1:35.80 | $33,390 | G1 |
| 1975 | Ruffian | 3 | Jacinto Vásquez | Frank Y. Whiteley Jr. | Locust Hill Farm | 1 m | 1:34.40 | $33,660 | G1 |
| 1974-1 | Chris Evert | 3 | Jorge Velásquez | Joseph A. Trovato | Carl Rosen | 1 m | 1:36.00 | $33,960 | G1 |
| 1974-2 | Special Team | 3 | Miguel A. Rivera | James E. Picou | Fred W. Hooper | 1 m | 1:35.40 | $33,960 | G1 |
| 1973 | Windy's Daughter | 3 | Braulio Baeza | Laz Barrera | Bernice Blackman | 1 m | 1:35.40 | $36,540 | G1 |
| 1972 | Susan's Girl | 3 | Victor Tejada | John W. Russell | Fred W. Hooper | 1 m | 1:34.60 | $33,720 | |
| 1971 | Deceit | 3 | John L. Rotz | Del W. Carroll | Windfields Farm | 1 m | 1:36.60 | $38,970 | |
| 1970-1 | Royal Signal | 3 | Garth Patterson | Stephen A. DiMauro | Mary Louise Knapp Jr. | 1 m | 1:36.20 | $36,967 | |
| 1970-2 | Cathy Honey | 3 | Laffit Pincay Jr. | Evan S. Jackson | Hastings Harcourt | 1 m | 1:36.00 | $36,967 | |
| 1969 | Shuvee | 3 | Jesse Davidson | Willard C. Freeman | Anne Minor Stone | 1 m | 1:35.60 | $38,707 | |
| 1968 | Dark Mirage | 3 | Manuel Ycaza | Everett W. King | Lloyd I. Miller | 1 m | 1:34.80 | $39,065 | |
| 1967 | Furl Sail | 3 | Jacinto Vásquez | John L. Winans | Emma Louise Thomas | 1 m | 1:35.60 | $44,330 | |
| 1966 | Marking Time | 3 | Bill Shoemaker | Edward A. Neloy | Ogden Phipps | 1 m | 1:36.00 | $38,642 | |
| 1965 | Ground Control | 3 | Donald Pierce | Edward A. Neloy | Jules D. Michaels | 1 m | 1:37.20 | $38,220 | |
| 1964 | Castle Forbes | 3 | John L. Rotz | Edward A. Neloy | Wheatley Stable | 1 m | 1:37.00 | $39,098 | |
| 1963 | Spicy Living | 3 | Jimmy Combest | Jimmy Rowe | Eleonora Sears | 1 m | 1:37.20 | $39,098 | |
| 1962 | Cicada | 3 | Bill Shoemaker | Casey Hayes | Meadow Stable | 1 m | 1:35.60 | $37,992 | |
| 1961 | Bowl of Flowers | 3 | Eddie Arcaro | J. Elliott Burch | Brookmeade Stable | 1 m | 1:37.40 | $37,537 | |
| 1960 | Irish Jay | 3 | Hedley Woodhouse | James E. Fitzsimmons | Wheatley Stable | 1 m | 1:35.80 | $38,292 | |
| 1959 | Quill | 3 | Bobby Ussery | Lucien Laurin | Reginald N. Webster | 1 m | 1:37.40 | $38,075 | |
| 1958 | Big Effort | 3 | Pete D. Anderson | J. Elliott Burch | Brookmeade Stable | 1 m | 1:37.40 | $22,952 | |
| 1957 | Bayou | 3 | Bobby Ussery | Moody Jolley | Claiborne Farm | 1 m | 1:37.00 | $26,000 | |
| 1956 | Beyond (DH) | 3 | Conn McCreary | Horace A. Jones | Calumet Farm | 1 m | 1:37.80 | $12,650 | |
| 1956 | Princess Turia (DH) | 3 | Henry Moreno | Horace A. Jones | Calumet Farm | 1 m | 1:37.80 | $12,650 | |
| 1955 | High Voltage | 3 | Eddie Arcaro | James E. Fitzsimmons | Wheatley Stable | 1 m | 1:38.80 | $22,900 | |
| 1954 | Happy Mood (DH) | 3 | Pete Moreno | Monte S. Parke | Fannie Hertz | 1 m | 1:38.80 | $10,925 | |
| 1954 | Riverina (DH) | 3 | William Boland | Max Hirsch | King Ranch | 1 m | 1:38.80 | $10,925 | |
| 1953 | Secret Meeting | 3 | James Nichols | Robert L. Dotter | James Cox Brady Jr. | 1 m | 1:39.40 | $18,450 | |
| 1952 | Parading Lady | 3 | James Hardinbrook | John B. Theall | Joe W. Brown | 1 m | 1:38.80 | $18,650 | |
| 1951-1 | Kiss Me Kate | 3 | Warren Mehrtens | Oscar White | Walter M. Jeffords | 1 m | 1:36.40 | $16,750 | |
| 1951-2 | Nothirdchance | 3 | Bennie Green | Hirsch Jacobs | Isidor Bieber | 1 m | 1:38.80 | $16,550 | |
| 1950 | Siama | 3 | Ted Atkinson | Moody Jolley | Cain Hoy Stable | 1 m | 1:37.20 | $12,600 | |
| 1949 | Nell K | 3 | Douglas Dodson | John B. Partridge | Spring Hill Farm | 1 m | 1:38.00 | $13,725 | |
| 1948 | Watermill | 3 | Eddie Arcaro | Bert Mulholland | George D. Widener Jr. | 1 m | 1:37.00 | $12,525 | |
| 1947 | But Why Not | 3 | Warren Mehrtens | Max Hirsch | King Ranch | 1 m | 1:38.00 | $14,300 | |
| 1946 | Earshot | 3 | Eddie Arcaro | Willie Booth | William G. Helis Sr. | 1 m | 1:37.20 | $9,840 | |
| 1945 | Gallorette | 3 | Eddie Arcaro | Edward A. Christmas | William L. Brann | 1 m | 1:37.20 | $9,480 | |
| 1944 | Twilight Tear | 3 | Conn McCreary | Ben A. Jones | Calumet Farm | 1 m | 1:37.00 | $10,815 | |
| 1943 | Nellie L | 3 | Wendell Eads | Ben A. Jones | Calumet Farm | 1 m | 1:38.60 | $10,650 | |
| 1942 | Zaca Rosa | 3 | Charles Wahler | Frank J. Baker | William W. Crenshaw | 1 m | 1:38.20 | $11,300 | |
| 1941 | Proud One | 3 | Wendell Eads | Ben A. Jones | Calumet Farm | 1 m | 1:37.60 | $7,275 | |
| 1940 | Damaged Goods | 3 | John Gilbert | John M. Milburn | Starmount Stable (Edward Benjamin) | 1 m | 1:37.00 | $12,025 | |
| 1939 | Hostility | 3 | Leon Haas | James E. Fitzsimmons | Wheatley Stable | 1 m | 1:39.80 | $12,100 | |
| 1938 | Handcuff | 3 | Charley Kurtsinger | Hugh L. Fontaine | Brookmeade Stable | 1 m | 1:39.80 | $10,325 | |
| 1937 | Dawn Play | 3 | Lester Balaski | Max Hirsch | King Ranch | 1 m | 1:38.80 | $10,100 | |
| 1936 | Blue Sheen | 3 | James Stout | James E. Fitzsimmons | Whitney A. Stone | 1 m | 1:38.80 | $10,600 | |
| 1935 | Good Gamble | 3 | Sam Renick | Bud Stotler | Alfred G. Vanderbilt II | 1 m | 1:39.00 | $7,325 | |
| 1934 | Fleam | 3 | James Stout | James E. Fitzsimmons | Belair Stud | 1 m | 1:38.00 | $8,575 | |
| 1933 | Iseult | 3 | Hank Mills | James E. Fitzsimmons | Wheatley Stable | 1 m | 1:40.60 | $10,650 | |
| 1932 | Top Flight | 3 | Raymond Workman | Thomas J. Healey | C. V. Whitney | 1 m | 1:39.00 | $12,850 | |
| 1931 | Baba Kenney | 3 | Willie Cannon | Herbert J. Thompson | Edward R. Bradley | 1 m | 1:41.00 | $3,375 |
References
- ^ a b "Acorn Stakes". NYRA. 2020-06-20. Retrieved 27 May 2023.
- ^ Grening, David (1 June 2024). "Thorpedo Anna - Just F Y I rematch likely in Acorn Stakes". Daily Racing Form. Retrieved 2 June 2024.
- ^ "Baba Kenney Takes Acorn". New York Times. 1931-05-17. Section Sports, page 141. Archived from the original on 2020-05-06. Retrieved 2020-08-12.
- ^ "Gallorette Accounts for Belmont's Acorn Stakes". Daily Racing Form. 1945-06-08. Retrieved 2020-08-13 – via University of Kentucky Archives.
- ^ "Ruffian Wins Acorn for 8th Straight". New York Times. 1975-05-11. Section Sports, page 1. Retrieved 2020-08-13.
- ^ "Peter Fuller's Mom's Command led all the way". Associated Press News. 1985-05-25. Retrieved 2020-08-13.
- ^ "Midnight Lucky Dominates Acorn Stakes". The Saratogian. 2013-05-28. Retrieved 2020-08-13.