The Los Alamitos Derby (formerly the Swaps Stakes) is a race for

Thoroughbred The Thoroughbred is a list of horse breeds, horse breed developed for Thoroughbred racing, horse racing. Although the word ''thoroughbred'' is sometimes used to refer to any breed of purebred horse, it technically refers only to the Thorough ...

horses The horse (''Equus ferus caballus'') is a domesticated, one-toed, hoofed mammal. It belongs to the taxonomic family Equidae and is one of two extant subspecies of ''Equus ferus''. The horse has evolved over the past 45 to 55 milli ...

run annually at

Los Alamitos Race Course Los Alamitos Race Course is a horse racing track in Cypress, California. The track hosts both thoroughbred and quarter horse racing. The track has the distinction of holding four quarter horse stakes races with purses over $1 million, more than ...

Los Alamitos, California is a city in Orange County, California. The city was incorporated in March 1960. The population was 11,780 at the 2020 census, up from 11,449 at the 2010 census. The USA Water Polo National Aquatic Center is located on the Joint Forces Tr ...

. The race is open to three-year-old horses and is contested at one and one-eighth miles on the dirt. A Listed event, it currently carries a purse of $100,000. Before 2014, the race was called the Swaps Stakes and was run at

Hollywood Park Racetrack Hollywood Park was a thoroughbred horse racing, race course located in Inglewood, California, about 3 miles (5 km) from Los Angeles International Airport and adjacent to The Forum (Inglewood, California), the Forum indoor arena. In 1994, t ...

before its closure in 2013. At that point, it moved to Los Alamitos. Prior to 1973 Hollywood Park's stakes schedule included the

Hollywood Derby The Hollywood Derby is a Grade I American Thoroughbred horse race held annually in late November/early December. Now held at Del Mar racetrack in San Diego, California, until 2014 it was held at Hollywood Park Racetrack in Inglewood, Californi ...

(prior to 1959 named the Westerner), a 1 mile stakes run on dirt which tended to attract top 3 year olds. Horses such as

Round Table The Round Table (; ; ; ) is King Arthur's famed table (furniture), table in the Arthurian legend, around which he and his knights congregate. As its name suggests, it has no head, implying that everyone who sits there has equal status, unlike co ...

Bold Reason Bold Reason (1968–1985) was an American Thoroughbred horse racing, racehorse and Leading broodmare sire in Great Britain & Ireland, Champion broodmare sire. Background Bold Reason was bred by Harry F. Guggenheim, Harry Guggenheim, and was si ...

, and

Riva Ridge Riva Ridge (April 13, 1969 – April 21, 1985) was a Thoroughbred racehorse, the winner of the Kentucky Derby and Belmont Stakes in 1972. Often remembered simply as a stablemate of Secretariat, Riva Ridge was a successful racehorse in his own rig ...

won the Hollywood Derby after competing in the U.S. Triple Crown. When the Hollywood Derby changed to 1 miles on the turf in 1973, there was no 1 mile dirt race to attract top 3 year olds from the Triple Crown series. Management decided to add the Swaps Stakes, named in honor of the notable

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

-bred 1955

Kentucky Derby The Kentucky Derby () is an American Graded stakes race, Grade I stakes Thoroughbred racing, race run at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky. The race is run by three-year-old Thoroughbreds at a distance of . Colt (horse), Colts and geldin ...

winner Swaps, to the 1974 July stakes schedule to fill that void. To lure top 3 year olds to enter the Swaps Stakes, at base a $100,000 added event, provisions were included to increase the purse substantially if one or more Triple Crown race winners participated. This came into play the following year when

Belmont Stakes The Belmont Stakes is an American Graded stakes race, Grade I stakes Thoroughbred racing, race for three-year-old Thoroughbreds run at Belmont Park in Elmont, New York. It is run over the worldwide classic distance of . Colt (horseracing), Colt ...

winner Avatar entered which triggered an increase of added purse money to $200,000. In 1977 a $300,000 purse attracted Triple Crown winner

Seattle Slew Seattle Slew (February 15, 1974 – May 7, 2002) was a champion American Thoroughbred horse racing, racehorse who became the tenth winner of the Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing (United States), American Triple Crown (1977). He is one of only ...

, who suffered the first loss of his career when he ran fourth to winner

J O Tobin J. O. Tobin (March 28, 1974 – May 22, 1994) was an American-bred thoroughbred racehorse. As a two-year-old, he was sent to Europe, where he won his first three races, including the Richmond Stakes and Champagne Stakes, and was the highest-rated ...

. The Hollywood Derby continued as a 1 mile turf stakes through 1975, after which it was moved to earlier in the meeting to serve as a Kentucky Derby prep race at 1 miles on dirt. This prep would serve

Affirmed Affirmed (February 21, 1975 – January 12, 2001) was a champion American Thoroughbred horse racing, racehorse who is the eleventh winner of the Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing (United States), American Triple Crown. Affirmed was well known ...

well in 1978 as he would win the Hollywood Derby en route to becoming the 11th Triple Crown champion. The Hollywood Derby became a permanent turf stakes in 1981, contested first at the Hollywood Park Fall Meet, then moving to

Del Mar racetrack The Del Mar Fairgrounds is an event venue in Del Mar, California. It hosts the annual San Diego County Fair. The venue sits on a property along the Pacific Ocean coastline. It includes the Del Mar Racetrack, built in 1936 by the Del Mar Thoroug ...

in 2014 after the closing of Hollywood Park. Although the inaugural running of the Swaps Stakes was ungraded, it would be contested as a Grade I event from 1975 through 1988. The race was downgraded to a Grade II event in 1989. It regained Grade I in 1999, but this was short-lived as it became a Grade II again in 2002. In 2017, the race was downgraded once more to a Grade III level. Downgraded to Listed in 2022.

Records

Speed record: * 1:59.20 @ 1 miles : Majestic Light (1976) * 1:45.80 @ 1 miles : Free House (1997) Most wins by a

jockey A jockey is someone who rides horses in horse racing or steeplechase (horse racing), steeplechase racing, primarily as a profession. The word also applies to camel riders in camel racing. The word "jockey" originated from England and was used ...

: * 5 -

Chris McCarron Christopher John McCarron (born March 27, 1955, Boston, Massachusetts) is a retired American thoroughbred horse racing Hall of Fame jockey. He mounted his first horse ever at 16.5 years old and was racing professionally by 18. At only 19 years ...

(1982, 1984, 1986, 1992, 1998) Most wins by a trainer: * 14 -

Bob Baffert Robert A. Baffert (born January 13, 1953) is an American racehorse trainer. He has trained two Triple Crown winners: American Pharoah in 2015 and Justify in 2018. Baffert's horses have won the Kentucky Derby six times, tying the record with ...

(2000, 2001, 2003, 2009, 2012, 2015, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024) Most wins by an owner: * 4 - Michael Pegram (2000, 2015, 2018, 2020)

Winners

References

{{Reflist
The 2008 Swaps Stakes at the NTRA
Horse races in California Hollywood Park Racetrack Los Alamitos, California Flat horse races for three-year-olds Previously graded stakes races in the United States