Saratoga Oaks Invitational Stakes Explained

Surface:	Turf
Class:	Grade II
Horse Race:	Saratoga Oaks Invitational Stakes
Location:	Saratoga Race Course Saratoga Springs, New York, United States
Inaugurated:	2019
Website:	NYRA
Distance:	miles
Track:	Left-handed
Qualification:	Three-year-old fillies
Purse:	US$400,000 (since 2023)

The Saratoga Oaks Invitational Stakes is a Grade II American Thoroughbred horse race for three-year-old fillies and older run over a distance of one and three-sixteenths miles on the turf held annually in August at Saratoga Race Course in Saratoga Springs, New York.

History

In 2019 the New York Racing Association with the influx of racino dollars created a new racing series for three year old fillies called the Turf Tiara. The Saratoga Oaks Invitational Stakes was positioned as the second leg of the new three race series. The other events of the Turf Tiara are the Belmont Oaks and the Jockey Club Oaks at Belmont Park.^[1]

The event's inaugural running was on 2 August 2019 and was won by Ashbrook Farm & BBN Racing's Concrete Rose who was ridden by jockey Julien R. Leparoux and trained by trainer George Arnold II comfortably leading all the way by lengths as the 3/10 odds on favorite by a head in a time of 1:55.34.^[2] Concrete Rose was injured soon after and was retired after winning six of her seven lifetime starts.^[3]

In 2021 the event was upgraded in classification by the Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association's American Graded Stakes Committee to Grade III^[4] and once again upgraded in 2024 to Grade II.^[5]

Records

Speed record:

• miles: 1:53.30 Antoinette (2020)

Margins:

• lengths – Concrete Rose (2019)

Most wins by an owner:

• 3 – Godolphin Racing (2020, 2022, 2024)

Most wins by a jockey:

• 2 – Flavien Prat (2021, 2023)
• 2 – William Buick (2022, 2024)

Most wins by a trainer:

• 2 – Charlie Appleby (2022, 2024)

Winners

Year	Winner	Jockey	Trainer	Owner	Time	Grade	Ref
Saratoga Oaks Invitational Stakes
2024	Cinderella's Dream (GB)	William Buick	Charlie Appleby		1:54.92	II	^[6]
2023		Flavien Prat		LNJ Foxwoods, Ecurie Victoria Dreams, NK Racing & Anthony V. Munafo	1:57.08	III	^[7]
2022		William Buick	Charlie Appleby	Godolphin Racing	1:54.60	III	^[8]
2021	Con Lima	Flavien Prat	Todd A. Pletcher	Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners, Joseph Graffeo, Nikolaus Bock & Troy Johnson	1:54.42	III	^[9]
2020	Antoinette		William I. Mott	Godolphin Racing	1:53.30		^[10]
2019		Julien R. Leparoux		Ashbrook Farm & BBN Racing	1:55.34		^[11]

Legend:

See also

• List of American and Canadian Graded races

Notes and References

1. Web site: BloodHorse Staff . Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners' Turf Runners Gear Up . Bloodhorse.com . 31 July 2021 . 18 April 2021.
2. Web site: LaRue . Mary . Concrete Rose 2-For-2 in Turf Tiara After Saratoga Oaks . Bloodhorse.com . 31 July 2021 . 2 August 2019.
3. Web site: Concrete Rose (Profile) . equibase.com . 31 July 2021.
4. Web site: TOBA Announces U.S. Graded and Listed Stakes for 2021 . 2021 . 17 July 2021 . . Andrew . Schweigardt.
5. Web site: TOBA Announces U.S. Graded and Listed Stakes for 2024 . 16 December 2023 . 17 December 2023 . Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association.
6. Web site: 2024 Saratoga Oaks Invitational Stakes Grade 3 - (race 8) . 2 August 2024 . Equibase . 3 August 2024 .
7. Web site: 2023 Saratoga Oaks Invitational Stakes Grade 3 - (race 7) . 4 August 2023. Equibase . 4 August 2023 .
8. Web site: 2022 Saratoga Oaks Invitational Stakes Grade 3 - (race 7) . 7 August 2021 . Equibase . 8 August 2022 .
9. Web site: 2021 Saratoga Oaks Invitational Stakes Grade 3 - (race 9) . 8 August 2021 . Equibase . 8 August 2021 .
10. Web site: 2020 Saratoga Oaks Invitational Stakes Black Type - (race 9) . 16 August 2020 . Equibase . 31 July 2021.
11. Web site: 2019 Saratoga Oaks Invitational Stakes Black Type - (race 9) . Equibase . 2 August 2019 . 31 July 2021.