Aqueduct Racetrack and Its Three Main Races

Posted by Linda Hudson on August 28th, 2019

Aqueduct racetrack is situated in Queens, New York City. This racetrack was opened in 1894. And this 192-acre site contains stables currently housing more than 400 horses.

Being the only racetrack in the NY City limits, the racetrack also includes the NYRA headquarters. This racetrack can accommodate about 40,000 people.

There are three different courses located within the aqueduct racetrack with an inner turf track which is just over 7f. Then have a longer turf track which is one mile in its circumference and an outer dirt track of 1m1f.

Three Main Races at the Aqueduct

The racing season starts around Halloween and lasts through April this Aqueduct Racetrack is the home to some notable Thoroughbred races during the racing season. It may not host one of the widely-televised Triple Crown events, but this doesn’t mean that the events here don’t matter. You can easily find the events details and Aqueduct tips online.

Here are the three most well-known races that are annually held at the Aqueduct racetrack.

Wood Memorial Stakes

If you love horse races with seven-figure purses, then Wood Memorial Stakes is right up your alley. Boasting about a ,000,000 prize pool, this race has been running at the Aqueduct Racetrack every year since 1925. In fact, this was actually a Grade-I race for many years, including as recently as from 2002-2016.

Cigar Mile Handicap

The name of this race comes from the famous horse, Cigar, who has won this event in 1994. To qualify for this race is simple: any horse that’s three years old or older is eligible. The word “handicap” here just implies that the rules are designed in order to even out the playing field. By adding weight to certain horses, the authorities ensure that none of the horses are significantly lighter or heavier than the others in the field.

Carter Handicap

The 0,000 purse offered at the Carter Handicap is the lower amount than the above two races, but neither of them has as much history and traditional values attached to it as the Carter Handicap does.

In this race there’s no limit on how old a horse can be to enter this event, as long as they are at least three years old. At only about 7/8 of a mile long, don’t let the shortness of this race fool you into thinking that fewer skills are involved. It has been like this ever since 1903, so there’s no shortage of sample size when it comes to the database of winners at this race.