Arlington Million
| Location | Arlington Park Arlington Heights, Illinois |
|---|---|
| Inaugurated | 1981 |
| Race type | Thoroughbred |
| Website | Arlington Park web site |
| Race information | |
| Distance | 1 ¼ miles |
| Track | Turf, Left-handed |
| Qualification | 3-y-o & Up, Thoroughbreds |
| Weight | Weight for age |
| Purse | $1,000,000 |
The Arlington Million is a Grade 1 flathorse race in the United States for thoroughbred horses aged three years and upward. It is raced over a distance of 1¼ miles (approximately 2,000 metres) on the turf at Arlington Park, Arlington Heights, Illinois (a suburb of Chicago) in August each year.[1]
The Arlington Million, as its name implies was the first thoroughbred race to offer a purse of US$1,000,000 in August 1981. It is part of the Breeders' Cup Challenge series, the winner of the 2008 Arlington Million automatically qualifies for the Breeders' Cup Turf.[2]
The Arlington Million was introduced in 1981 by Joe Joyce, the President of Arlington at the time. The winner not only receives 60% of the million dollar purse but also the elegant Arlington Million Trophy. The race was graded after only its second running and was instantly awarded a grade one status in 1983 based upon the talent of the runners that raced in its first two years.[3]
The horse John Henry succeeded in winning the race twice.[4][5] On August 30, 1981, Willie Shoemaker became the first jockey to win a $1 million thoroughbred horse race when John Henry took the inaugural Arlington Million by a nose over The Bart. The track famously ran the Arlington Million in 1985 under the shadow of a burnt out grandstand, the victim of a fire 25 days earlier. In 2007, Jambalaya became the first Canadian bred horse to win the Arlington Million and his trainer, Catherine Day Phillips the first female trainer to ever win the race.[6]
The race has been run under several different named in the past. In 1981 it was called the Arlington Million Invitational Stakes; from 1982 through 1984 it was known as the Budweiser Million Stakes, and the Budweiser-Arlington Million from 1985 through 1987. In 1989 the race was held at Woodbine Racetrack in Toronto, Ontario. The race was not held in 1998 and 1999.
Contents |
[edit] Records
Time record:
- 1:58.69 - Awad (1995)
Most wins:
- 2 - John Henry (1981, 1984)
Most wins by an owner:
- 2 - Dotsam Stable (1981, 1984), Juddmonte Farms (2000, 2002)
Most wins by a jockey:
- 2 - Laffit Pincay, Jr. (1982, 1991), Cash Asmussen (1988, 1992), Jose Santos (1990, 1993), Gary L. Stevens (1990, 1997), Jerry D. Bailey (2000, 2002)
Most wins by a trainer:
- 3 - Ron McAnally (1981, 1984, 1991), Charlie Whittingham (1982, 1986, 1990)
Largest Margin of Victory:
- Estrapade (1986), Five Lengths
[edit] Winners of the Arlington Million since 1981
* Storming Home finished first in 2003 but was demoted to fourth place following a Stewards' Inquiry.
** Powerscourt finished first in 2004 but was demoted to fourth place following a Stewards' Inquiry.
[edit] References
[edit] Notes
- No races were held at Arlington International Racecourse in 1998 or 1999, as the Illinois horse racing authorities did not authorise dates for the track.
- Starting in 1991, timing was arranged to hundredths.
- In 2004, Pat Gibson won a million pounds on the UK version of Who Wants to be a Millionaire? by correctly answering the Million was not a Triple Crown race in the United States (which were the Kentucky Derby, the Preakness Stakes and the Belmont Stakes).
- Starting in 2007, the winner of this race will qualify for the Breeders Cup World Thoroughbred Championships in the Turf Division.
