TurfPedia™ - The Horse Racing Encyclopedia

STAKES AND HANDICAPS

Lower Grade open stakes, for three year olds and up.

FORM:

Has raced within six weeks, sharp regular workouts since; latest races among best efforts.

DISTANCE:

If four or older, has won at exact distance; if three, has won at exact distance or related distance.

(During the first four months of the season the above requirements and preferences below apply also to races for four-year-olds and up.)

HANDICAPPERS PREFER:

1. A horse that has won a Grade I or Grade II stakes within the past three months.
2. Horses that recently won an open listed stakes having a purse value similar to or better than today's.
3. Any three-year-old that won an open stakes powerfully when entered against its own age group.

IN THE ABSENCE OF THE ABOVE, PREFER:

4. Recent runners-up in listed graded or open stakes, especially horses that have won a classified allowance race easily since.
5. Highly consistent, higher-priced claiming horses provided they remain in peak form, are perfectly suited to the distance and footing, and will be favored by the probable early pace.

REGULAR ELIMINATIONS:

1. Horses four-and-up that do not compete at least occasionally and satisfactorily in open stakes and handicaps.
2. Horses five-and-up that have never won a stakes.
3. Three-year-olds that have been unable to win an open stakes when so entered against their own age group.
4. Horses four-and-up that won a conditioned stakes at age two or three but since have not finished in-the-money of an open stakes open to older runners.
5. Three-year-olds that are stakes winners against that age group but have been unable to finish fourth or better in open stakes open to older runners.
6. Foreign-raced horses that have not won a Group II or Group III stakes overseas.
7. Inconsistent allowance horses, unexceptional claiming horses.

EXTRA ADDED ATTRACTIONS:

1. Won a stakes race last out.
2. Highest earnings by comfortable margin.
3. Coming up to peak effort today.
4. Third or fourth outing for previous stakes winner following lengthy layoff, notably if comeback race was a good but losing effort under classified allowance conditions at wrong distance or on wrong footing.
5. Previous losing race designed as a prep for today's major stakes objective.

SPECIAL CONDITIONS:
Purse of less than $100,OO0 and none of the preferred profiles can be found, prefer:

1. Multiple winners of classified allowance purses this season.
2. Any horse whose recent consistency (two wins in latest six races) indicates best form of its career.

ON TURF, PREFER:

1. Previous stakes winner on turf.
2. Impressive classified winners on turf.
3. Still-improving three or four-year-olds whose latest race, on turf, was best yet, by large margin.

An in-the-money finish in a conditioned stakes does not qualify three-year-olds for consideration in an open stakes open to older runners.