San Felipe Stakes

American Thoroughbred horse race

Horse race

The San Felipe Stakes is an American Thoroughbred horse race run annually at Santa Anita Park in Arcadia, California. It is a Grade II event open to three-year-old horses. Normally held in early -March, it is raced at a distance of one and one-sixteenth miles (8+1⁄2 furlongs) on dirt and currently offers a purse of $400,000. It is listed as an official prep race on the Road to the Kentucky Derby.

Race history

Inaugurated as the San Felipe Handicap in 1935, due to World War II there was no race run in 1942, 1943, and 1944. From 1935 through 1940 the race was open to colts and geldings, three years of age and older. Since 1941 it has been restricted to three-year-olds and in 1952 was made open to all three-year-olds irrespective of their sex. It was raced as a handicap event from 1935 through 1941 and again from 1952 through 1990.

As a prep for both the Santa Anita and Kentucky Derbies, the San Felipe has featured many of California's top three-year-olds over the years, including Derby winners California Chrome, Fusaichi Pegasus, Sunday Silence and Triple Crown winner Affirmed.

The 2019 San Felipe was cancelled due to Santa Anita's safety-related suspension of live racing.^[4]

Since inception, it has been competed over a variety of distances:

• 6 furlongs: 1938–1940, 1945–1946
• 7 furlongs: 1937, 1941, 1947–1951
• 1 mile: 1935–1936
• 1+1⁄16 miles: since 1952

The San Felipe Stakes was run in two divisions in 1968 and 1970.

Race records

Speed record:

• 1:40.11 - Consolidator (2005) (at current distance of 1+1⁄16 miles)

Most wins by a jockey:

• 7 - Chris McCarron (1982, 1983, 1986, 1988, 1991, 1993, 1998)

Most wins by a trainer:

• 9 - Bob Baffert (1999, 2001, 2004, 2009, 2015, 2017, 2020, 2021, 2024)

Most wins by an owner:

• 2 - Fred W. Hooper (1949, 1982)
• 2 - Andrew J. Crevolin (1953, 1954)
• 2 - William Haggin Perry (1965, 1968)
• 2 - Burt Bacharach (1994, 1995)
• 2 - Starlight Racing (2020, 2024)
• 2 - SF Racing (2020, 2024)

Winners

* In 1983, Naevus was disqualified from first to second.

See also

• Road to the Kentucky Derby

References

1. "Santa Anita Media Guide (PDF)" (PDF). www.santaanita.com. Retrieved 8 June 2020.
2. "Chart of the 2020 San Felipe". www.equibase.com. Retrieved 8 June 2020.
3. "San Felipe Stakes Profile". www.equibase.com. Retrieved 12 March 2017.
4. Cherwa, John (8 March 2019). "Santa Anita hopes to resume horse racing around March 22". Retrieved 14 March 2019.

• February 21, 1990 New York Times article on the creation of the Preview Stakes
• The San Felipe Stakes at Pedigree Query