50 articles
2000 Guineas Stakes
2000 Guineas Stakes, a Group 1 mile race at Newmarket's Rowley Mile for three-year-old colts and fillies; first run 1809, first British Classic and Triple Crown first leg; winners include Frankel and Ruling Court.
2018 Kentucky Derby
2018 Kentucky Derby: 144th running, May 5, 2018, Churchill Downs. Justify, trained by Bob Baffert, ridden by Mike Smith, won by 2 1/2 lengths over Good Magic on the wettest Derby on record (3.15 inches of rain), then swept the Triple Crown.
2019 Kentucky Derby
2019 Kentucky Derby (145th running, May 4, 2019, Churchill Downs): Maximum Security finished first but was the first on-track DQ winner in Derby history; Country House (65-1) was elevated to first, paying $132.40, on a record $250.9 million handle.
2025 Kentucky Derby
2025 Kentucky Derby (151st running, May 3, 2025, Churchill Downs): Sovereignty, 7-1, trained by Bill Mott for Godolphin, beat favorite Journalism by 1½ lengths in 2:02.31 on a sloppy track; later won the Belmont.
2026 Kentucky Derby
2026 Kentucky Derby, 152nd Run for the Roses, May 2, 2026 at Churchill Downs; 20-horse $5 million race won by 35-1 Golden Tempo, trained by Cherie DeVaux, first woman trainer to win it.
Arima Kinen (有馬記念)
Arima Kinen (有馬記念), Japan's year-end G1 'Grand Prix' at Nakayama Racecourse since 1956, a 2,500m turf race whose top ten runners are chosen by fan vote; richest race alongside the Japan Cup.
Ascot Gold Cup
Gold Cup (Ascot Gold Cup): Group 1 flat race at Royal Ascot over 2m3f210y for horses aged four and older, first run 1807; record winners Yeats (4), jockey Lester Piggott (11), trainer Aidan O'Brien (10).
Belmont Stakes
The Belmont Stakes, known as the Test of the Champion, is a Grade 1 American Thoroughbred race for three-year-olds, run each June since 1867 as the Triple Crown's final leg.
Breeders' Cup
Breeders' Cup World Championships, annual Thoroughbred racing championship founded by John R. Gaines, announced 1982, first run 1984 at Hollywood Park; now a two-day, 14-race Grade 1 event with rotating host tracks and over $34 million in purses.
Breeders' Cup Classic
Breeders' Cup Classic: Grade 1, 1 1/4-mile dirt race for 3-year-olds and up, richest Breeders' Cup race at $7 million since 2024. Founded 1984 at Hollywood Park; weight-for-age; recent winners Sierra Leone (2024) and Japan's Forever Young (2025).
Breeders' Cup Turf
The Breeders' Cup Turf, also known as the BC Turf, is a Grade 1 Thoroughbred race on grass for horses three years old and older, first run in 1984.
Caulfield Cup
Caulfield Cup: Group 1 Australian Thoroughbred handicap over 2400 m at Caulfield, Melbourne, run by the Melbourne Racing Club since 1879; first winner Newminster; key Melbourne Cup lead-up.
Cox Plate
The Cox Plate, formally the W. S. Cox Plate, is a Group 1 weight-for-age Thoroughbred race for horses three years old and older, run over 2,040 meters at Moonee Valley Racecourse in Melbourne.
Derby Italiano
The Derby Italiano is Italy's premier flat horse race, run over 2,200 meters on turf. Historically held at Capannelle in Rome, it is known as the Blue Riband.
Deutsches Derby
The Deutsches Derby, first run in 1869 as the Norddeutsches Derby, is a Group 1 German flat horse race for three-year-old thoroughbreds over 2,400 meters at Hamburg-Horn in July.
Dubai World Cup (كأس دبي العالمي)
Dubai World Cup (كأس دبي العالمي): Group 1 dirt race over 2,000 m at Meydan Racecourse, Dubai, run since 1996 (first at Nad Al Sheba, won by Cigar); $12 million purse within a $30.5 million nine-race card; 2026 winner Magnitude.
Durban July Handicap
Durban July Handicap, the July: South Africa's premier Grade 1 handicap, 2200 m at Greyville, Durban, first Saturday of July; first run 1897, R10 million purse from 2026, Hollywoodbets title sponsor.
Epsom Derby
The Epsom Derby (Derby Stakes), a British Group 1 Classic for three-year-old colts and fillies run at Epsom Downs since 1780 over 1m4f10y; named by coin toss, £2 million prize from 2026.
Epsom Oaks
Epsom Oaks (the Oaks Stakes): British Group 1 Classic for three-year-old fillies over 1m4f at Epsom Downs, first run 14 May 1779, founded by the 12th Earl of Derby and named after his house The Oaks; run the Friday before the Derby.
Graded stakes race
Graded stakes race: top-tier US Thoroughbred races assigned Grade 1, 2, or 3 by TOBA's American Graded Stakes Committee since 1973; 410 graded races in 2026, earning black type in sales catalogs.
Grosser Preis von Baden
The Grosser Preis von Baden is a Group 1 flat horse race for three-year-olds and up over 2,400 meters at Iffezheim near Baden-Baden, Germany, held annually since 1858.
Group races
Group races are Thoroughbred horse races ranked Group 1, 2, or 3 within the European Pattern race system created in 1971, distinguishing them from Listed races and from the parallel North American Graded stakes system.
Hong Kong Cup
Hong Kong Cup: Group 1, 2000m turf race for 3yo+ at Sha Tin each December, richest race in Hong Kong at HK$40 million and flagship of the Hong Kong International Races. Romantic Warrior won it four times (2022-2025).
Hong Kong Derby
The Hong Kong Derby is the most prestigious local horse race in Hong Kong, run over 2000 meters at Sha Tin Racecourse by four-year-old Thoroughbreds since 1873.
Indian Derby
Indian Derby: India's premier Grade 1 horse race, first run 30 January 1943, run over 2400 m at Mahalaxmi Racecourse, Mumbai, on the first Sunday of February; 2026 winner Fynbos.
Irish 2,000 Guineas
Irish 2,000 Guineas (Tattersalls Irish 2,000 Guineas): Group 1 flat race over one mile at the Curragh, Ireland, for three-year-old colts and fillies, run each May after the Newmarket 2,000 Guineas; Aidan O'Brien leads trainers with 8 wins since 1990.
Irish Champion Stakes
Irish Champion Stakes, also run as Joe McGrath Memorial Stakes, a Group 1 flat race over 2000m each September at Leopardstown, Dublin; headline race of the Irish Champions Festival and an Arc trial, first run 1976.
Irish Derby
Irish Derby (Dubai Duty Free Irish Derby): Ireland's oldest classic, a Group 1 for three-year-olds over 2,400 m at the Curragh, founded 1866, run four weeks after Epsom; 2026 winner Benvenuto Cellini.
Japan Cup
Japan Cup (ジャパンカップ), Japan's premier G1 international invitational horse race, 2,400 m turf, weight for age, at Tokyo Racecourse each late November. First run 1981; 2023 IFHA world top-rated race; 2025 winner Calandagan in record 2:20.3.
Kentucky Derby
Kentucky Derby, the "Run for the Roses": Grade I stakes for three-year-old Thoroughbreds at 1 1/4 miles, first Saturday in May at Churchill Downs, Louisville. Run since 1875; first winner Aristides; first jewel of the Triple Crown.