Oaklawn to Stage Two $1M Races in 2019

[Wandering Eyes]

Having already announced an historic extension of their winter meeting into May for the first time, officials at Oaklawn Park in Hot Springs, Arkansas, said Wednesday that the GII Rebel S. will see its purse boosted by $100,000 to join the GI Arkansas Derby as seven-figure events to be staged in 2019. New to the stakes schedule are the $250,000 Oaklawn Invitational S., a nine-furlong test on Kentucky Derby day May 4, and the $200,000 Oaklawn Mile, the centerpiece of the track’s May 3 program.

“The Rebel S. has become a significant prep in its own right and warrants a one-million dollar purse with runners like Smarty Jones, Lookin at Lucky, Curlin, Oxbow, Will Take Charge, American Pharoah and Creator,” Oaklawn President Louis Cella said. “We’re extremely proud to offer the richest and most proven path to the Triple Crown.”

Oaklawn is the only track in the country to offer a pair of seven-figure lead-up races into the Triple Crown.

Some of the track’s other black-type races have seen their purses increased. The GIII Fantasy S., the local prep for the GI Kentucky Oaks contested on the opening day of the Racing Festival of the South, will be worth $500,000 in 2019, up $100,000 on 2018, while the GIII Bayakoa S., a steppingstone to the GI Apple Blossom H., sees its prize money hiked to $200,000 from its previous level of $150,000. The Bayakoa is part of a triple-stakes card on President’s Day, Monday, Feb. 18, sharing the bill with the $500,000 GIII Southwest S. and the $500,000 GIII Razorback H.

“We couldn’t be more excited about our new stakes and racing schedule,” Cella said. “We are now able to present some of our best racing during the best time of the year weather-wise in Arkansas. While the Racing Festival of the South will remain the focal point of the season, we look forward to growing the new stakes races and providing our fans with world-class racing into May.”

Oaklawn will stage 30 stakes events worth $8.85 million during the 2019 season, which runs Jan. 25 through May 4.

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