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Arlington St Leger a new addition to Arlington stakes slate The International Festival of Racing, featuring the 30th running of the Grade 1 Arlington Million, tops a 2012 schedule that includes 26 stakes races worth $5.8 million during 90 days of racing at Arlington Park from May 4 through September 30. The stakes schedule must first be approved by the Illinois Racing Board at its January meeting. Arlington's International Festival of Racing will be on August 18 and features three Grade 1 stakes -- the $1,000,000 Arlington Million for three-year-olds and up; the $750,000 Beverly D. for fillies and mares, three-years-old and up; and the $500,000 Secretariat Stakes for three-year-olds. The newly created $400,000 Arlington St Leger for three-year-olds up is also scheduled to be run over Arlington's internationally acclaimed turf course. The Million and Secretariat are both run at North America's classic distance of 1 1/4 miles while the Beverly D. is contested at 1 3/16 miles and the Arlington St. Leger will be carded at a 1 11/16 miles. The Secretariat received a $100,000 boost to its purse for the 2012 renewal. "The International Festival of Racing has always been a great event but now with the celebration of the 30th running of the Million, the addition of the Arlington St. Leger, and the purse increase of the Secretariat, the Festival is set to go to a whole new level," Arlington Park General Manager Tony Petrillo said. "We are extremely proud to be able to launch a new race with the Arlington St Leger," Petrillo said. "This is an historic race in Great Britain, the third leg of the English Triple Crown. We are honored to be able to name our race after that classic. It strengthens our relationships with the international racing community and we are sure this race will be very popular with the American racing fans." The 2012 schedule features several "big event" days that combine multiple stakes races onto a single card. The first of these days is scheduled for May 26 and will feature the Grade 3, $150,000 Arlington Matron Stakes, for fillies and mares at 1 1/8 miles on Polytrack, and the $125,000 Arlington Classic, the first leg of the Mid-America Triple for three-year-olds at 1 1/16 miles on the turf. One other added-money race on the May calendar is the Grade 3, $150,000 Hanshin Cup for older horses at one mile over Polytrack, which will be run on May 19. The June stakes slate is highlighted by the June 16 Prairie State Festival. The 13th annual showcase for Illinois-registered horses includes six $125,000 stakes for horses bred and/or foaled in Illinois. Each of these races is up $25,000 from last year making for an additional $150,000 available for state-bred runners. The Grade 3, $150,000 Chicago Handicap, a seven-furlong main track race, will close out the month's stakes slate on June 30. Million Preview Day, scheduled five weeks prior to the International Festival of Racing on July 14, includes major prep races for the four International Festival events. The Grade 3, $200,000 Arlington Handicap serves as the final local prep race for the Arlington Million while the Grade 3, $200,000 Modesty Handicap plays the same role for the Beverly D., and the Grade 3, $200,000 American Derby, which is also the second leg of the Mid-America Triple, leads into the Secretariat Stakes. In addition, the Grade 3, $150,000 Stars and Stripes Stakes at a mile and a half on the turf will be run as part of the Million Preview Day card to serve as a prep race for the Arlington St Leger. As has been the case for each of the last two years, the top three finishers in each of the Preview Day stakes races will have their entry and start fees waived for the counterpart race during the International Festival of Racing. Also to be run in July are the 2012 renewals of the $100,000 Arlington Sprint, a 5 1/2-furlong turf dash; and the Grade 3, $150,000 Arlington Oaks for three-year-old fillies which returns to the schedule after a year's absence. The Arlington Sprint is slated for July 7 with the local Oaks scheduled to run two weeks later on July 21. In addition to the International Festival of Racing, August's stakes slate includes the return of the Illinois Owners Stakes for Illinois-owned horses. Two-year-olds will be featured on September 8 when Arlington presents the Grade 3, $150,000 Arlington-Washington Futurity for two-year-old colts and geldings at one mile on Polytrack and the Grade 3, $150,000 Arlington-Washington Lassie for two-year-old fillies at one mile on the main track. Two additional stakes race are scheduled for the meet's final month -- the Grade 3, $150,000 Washington Park Handicap for older horses at 1 1/8 miles on the main track on September 1 and the Grade 3, $175,000 Pucker Up Stakes for three-year-old fillies at 1 1/8 miles on the turf, which will be run on September 15. With the influx of money from the Horse Racing Equity (HRE) Trust Fund, most of the stakes races enjoy purse increases from their 2011 figure, and the Arlington Oaks was able to return to the schedule.
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