American Graded Stakes Committee announces upgrades, downgrades for 2009

American Graded Stakes Committee announces upgrades,

downgrades for 2009

The American Graded Stakes Committee of the Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders

Association on Tuesday presented its listing of graded stakes for 2009, the

results of its annual grading session conducted November 24 in Lexington,

Kentucky.

The Committee reviewed 746 unrestricted U.S. stakes races with a purse of at

least $75,000, and assigned graded status to 488 of them, seven more than were

graded in 2008. A total of 13 graded races were upgraded, including six new

Grade 1 races and seven new Grade 2 races. Ten new Grade 3 races were

identified, while two races which carried Grade 3 status in 2008 are no longer

eligible for grading.

Six races were upgraded to Grade 1 status for 2009: the Breeders' Cup Filly

and Mare Sprint and Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile at Santa Anita, the Jamaica H. at

Belmont Park, the Pat O'Brien H. and Clement L. Hirsch H. at Del Mar, and the

Madison S. at Keeneland.

The Suburban H. at Belmont Park, a race won this decade by Horses of the Year

Invasor (Arg) and Mineshaft as well as champion Lemon Drop Kid, was downgraded

from Grade 1 to Grade 2 for 2009.

Seven races were upgraded to Grade 2 status for 2009: the Breeders' Cup

Juvenile Turf at Santa Anita, the Nashua S. at Aqueduct, the Churchill Downs

Distaff Turf Mile at Churchill Downs, the Colonial Turf Cup at Colonial Downs,

the Fayette S. and Thoroughbred Club of America S. at Keeneland, and the West

Virginia Derby at Mountaineer Park.

No races were downgraded from Grade 2 to Grade 3 in 2009.

Ten races were upgraded to Grade 3 status for 2009: the Fall Highweight H. at

Aqueduct, the Derby Trial S. at Churchill Downs, the Round Table H. at Hollywood

Park, the Woodford S. at Keeneland, the Presque Isle Downs Masters S. at Presque

Isle Downs, the Thunder Road H. and Daytona H. at Santa Anita Park, the With

Anticipation S. at Saratoga, the Massachusetts H. at Suffolk Downs, and the Sam

F. Davis S. at Tampa Bay Downs.

Four races were downgraded from Grade 3 to ungraded status for 2009: the

Gravesend H. at Aqueduct, the Bay Meadows Sprint H. at Bay Meadows, the Bill

Hartack Memorial H. at Hawthorne, and the Kentucky Cup Juvenile at Turfway Park.

The Memorial Day H. at Calder and Deputy Minister H. at Gulfstream Park were not

eligible for grading in 2009.