Caesar's Wish Stakes
The Caesar's Wish Stakes is a race for Thoroughbred horses held in late March at Laurel Park in Maryland, USA. The ungraded stakes race is open to three-year-old fillies, is run over one mile on the dirt, and offers a purse of $100,000.[1] It is a minor race on the road to the Filly Triple Crown each spring. The winner of the Caesar's Wish Stakes typically races next in either the Weber City Miss Stakes (Black-Eyed Susan Stakes Trial) at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore or the Gazelle Stakes at Aqueduct Racetrack in New York.[2]
| Ungraded Stakes race | |
| Location | Laurel Park Racecourse, Laurel, Maryland United States |
|---|---|
| Inaugurated | 1978 |
| Race type | Thoroughbred - Flat racing |
| Website | www |
| Race information | |
| Distance | 1 mile (8 furlongs) |
| Surface | Dirt |
| Track | left-handed |
| Qualification | Three-years-old, fillies |
| Weight | Assigned |
| Purse | $100,000 |
This race is named for Caesar's Wish (born 1975), who won 11 of her 16 starts, including the Grade I Black-Eyed Susan Stakes and the Grade I Mother Goose Stakes. She had career earnings of $314,507 and nine stakes victories. Caesar's Wish was a Maryland-bred daughter of Proudest Roman out of a mare name Primper (by Art Market). She was near the very top of her generation being named Maryland-bred Champion Filly at both age two and age three finishing in the money in 15 of 16 starts in those years. She was owned by Mrs. Sally Gibson, trained by Richard W. Small and bred by former Pimlico Race Course owners and executives Herman and Nathan Cohen. Trainer Dickie Small considered the filly as one of his greatest racing achievements, "She may not have made the most money, but she was definitely the fastest horse I've ever had." Caesar's Wish won five stakes races at age two and four stakes races at age three. After capturing the Black-Eyed Susan and the Mother Goose Stakes she attempted to seal her bid as the nation's top filly in 1978 by winning the Alabama Stakes. The chestnut filly was sent off as the odds on favorite but died of a heart attack at the top of the stretch.[3]
The Caesar's Wish Stakes was inaugurated at the former Bowie Race Course in 1978 and was run there through 1985. The race was run at Pimlico Race Course from 1986-2004, it was not run between 2005 and 2012 when it was shifted to Laurel Park Race Course beginning in 2013. The race has been run at three distances including it current length of one mile. From 1984-2004 the Caesar's Wish was run at its most common distance of one mile and one sixteenth and at seven furlongs between 1981-1983.
Records
Speed record:
- 1 mile - 1:38.01 - Jenda's Agenda (2017)
- 1 1⁄16 miles - 1:42 3/5 - Noblest Heart (1989)
- 7 furlongs - 1:24 1/5 - Hoverclubber (1981)
Most wins by an owner:
- 2- Robert Meyerhoff (DBA Fitzugh LLC in '07) (1994 &2007)
Most wins by a jockey:
- 5 - Mario Pino (1982, 1983, 1997, 1998 & 2001)
Most wins by a trainer:
- 2 - Todd A. Pletcher (1998 & 2005)
- 2 - Richard W. Small (1979 & 2004)
Winners of the Caesar's Wish Stakes
| Year |
Winner |
Age |
Jockey |
Trainer |
Owner |
Distance (Miles) |
Time |
Purse |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | Jenda’s Agenda | 3 | Gabriel Saez | Larry Jones | Fox Hill Farms | 1-mile | 1:38.01 | $100,000 |
| 2016 | Sophia's Song | 3 | Victor Carrasco | Todd A. Pletcher | Mathis Stable LLC | 1-mile | 1:38.40 | $100,000 |
| 2015 | By the Moon | 3 | Victor Carrasco | Michelle Nevin | Jay Em Ess Stable | 1-mile | 1:38.20 | $100,000 |
| 2014 | Steady N Love | 3 | Victor Carrasco | Gary Capuano | ZWP Stable Inc. | 1-mile | 1:41.00 | $100,000 |
| 2013 | Walkwithapurpose | 3 | Jeremy Rose | Ignacio Correas | Sagamore Farm | 1-mile | 1:38.20 | $150,000 |
| 2005-2012 | No Races | - | No Races | No Races | No Races | no races | 0:00.00 | no races |
| 2004 | He Loves Me | 3 | J. Santana | Richard W. Small | 1 1⁄16 | 1:44.60 | $75,000 | |
| 2003 | Grace Bay | 3 | Rick Wilson | Dale Capuano | Steven Newby | 1 1⁄16 | 1:45.40 | $75,000 |
| 2002 | Madame X Ski | 3 | Richard Migliore | James Jerkins | Susan & John Moore | 1 1⁄16 | 1:44.80 | $75,000 |
| 2001 | Hunka Hunka Lori Z | 3 | Mario Pino | Jerald Ferris | Charles Reed | 1 1⁄16 | 1:45.60 | $75,000 |
| 2000 | Case of the Blues | 3 | Mark T. Johnston | Hamilton Smith | Skeedattle Farms, II | 1 1⁄16 | 1:47.00 | $100,000 |
| 1999 | Silent Valay | 3 | G. Hutton | John Robb | Hal C. B. Clagett, III | 1 1⁄16 | 1:44.80 | $75,000 |
| 1998 | Maragold Princess | 3 | Edgar Prado | Todd A. Pletcher | Ryver Meadow Farm | 1 1⁄16 | 1:44.60 | $75,000 |
| 1997 | Weather Vane | 3 | Mario Pino | Richard Delp | Par Four Racing Stable | 1 1⁄16 | 1:43.60 | $75,000 |
| 1996 | Marfa's Finale | 3 | A. Bracho | William Donavan | Stoneworth Farm | 1 1⁄16 | 1:44.80 | $75,000 |
| 1995 | Blue Sky Princess | 3 | Mario Pino | Robin L. Graham | Frank Wright | 1 1⁄16 | 1:46.40 | $75,000 |
| 1994 | Calipha | 3 | Rick Wilson | Grover Delp | Nancy Bayard | 1 1⁄16 | 1:44.20 | $75,000 |
| 1993 | No Race | - | No Race | No Race | No Race | no race | 0:00.00 | no race |
| 1992 | Gammy's Alden | 3 | Mark T. Johnston | Jack Winterbotham | Vincent Bracciale, Jr. | 1 1⁄16 | 1:46.20 | $50,000 |
| 1991 | Wide Country | 3 | S. Chavez | Robert Camac | 1 1⁄16 | 1:44.00 | $75,000 | |
| 1990 | Valay Maid | 3 | M. Castaneda | 1 1⁄16 | 1:45.40 | $75,000 | ||
| 1989 | Noblest Heart | 3 | Joe Rocco | 1 1⁄16 | 1:42.60 | $75,000 | ||
| 1988 | Willa On the Move | 3 | J. Edwards | Leon J. Blusiewicz | Lorraine Quinichett | 1 1⁄16 | 1:44.00 | $70,000 |
| 1987 | Double Bunctious | 3 | Donnie Miller | Richard W. Small | 1 1⁄16 | 1:45.60 | $50,000 | |
| 1986 | Aroundback | 3 | J. Estrada | 1 1⁄16 | 1:45.00 | $50,000 | ||
| 1985 | Apalgaffey | 3 | G. Hutton | 1 1⁄16 | 1:45.40 | $25,000 | ||
| 1984 | Little Fuzzy | 3 | Albert Delgado | 1 1⁄16 | 1:46.80 | $35,000 | ||
| 1983 | Any Spray | 3 | D. Byrnes | 7 fur. | 1:24.20 | $25,000 | ||
| 1982 | Wicked Wave | 3 | Mario Pino | 7 fur. | 1:25.00 | $25,000 | ||
| 1981 | Hoverclubber | 3 | J. Kaenel | Trillora Inc. | 7 fur. | 1:24.20 | $35,000 | |
| 1980 | No Race | - | No Race | No Race | No Race | no race | 0:00.00 | no race |
| 1979 | No Race | - | No Race | No Race | No Race | no race | 0:00.00 | no race |
| 1978 | Silver Ice | 3 | T. Kupfer | C. Oliver Goldsmith | 1 1⁄16 | 1:45.40 | $30,000 | |
See also
- Caesar's Wish Stakes "top three finishers" and starters
- Laurel Park Racecourse
References
- "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2011-09-29. Retrieved 2011-03-21.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) Purse figures supplied by Laurel Park
- 2007 Maryland Jockey Club Media Guide, page 40 on March 3, 2007.
- Claiborne Farm Website, Stallion Home Page at http://www.claibornefarm.com/stallions/private-terms.shtml Archived 2007-08-11 at the Wayback Machine.