The Ruffian Stakes is a

Grade II In the United Kingdom, a listed building is a structure of particular architectural or historic interest deserving of special protection. Such buildings are placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Hi ...

American

thoroughbred horse race Thoroughbred racing is a sport and industry involving the racing of Thoroughbred horses. It is governed by different national bodies. There are two forms of the sport – flat racing and jump racing, the latter known as National Hunt racing in ...

for

fillies A filly is a female horse that is too young to be called a mare. There are two specific definitions in use: *In most cases, a ''filly'' is a female horse under four years old. *In some nations, such as the United Kingdom and the United States, th ...

and

mares A mare is an adult female horse or other equine. In most cases, a mare is a female horse over the age of three, and a filly is a female horse three and younger. In Thoroughbred horse racing, a mare is defined as a female horse more than four y ...

ages four-years-old and older run over a distance of one mile on a dirt track scheduled annually in early May at

Belmont Park Belmont Park is a thoroughbred racing, thoroughbred horse racetrack in Elmont, New York, just east of New York City limits best known for hosting the Belmont Stakes, the final leg of the American Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing (United Stat ...

Elmont, New York Elmont is an unincorporated Hamlet (New York), hamlet and census-designated place (CDP) located in northwestern Hempstead, New York, Hempstead in Nassau County, New York, Nassau County, New York, United States, along its border with the borough ...

Race history

The race is named in honor of the U.S. Racing Hall of Fame filly, Ruffian who broke down in a

match race A match race is a race between two competitors, going head-to-head. In sailboat racing it is differentiated from a fleet race, which almost always involves three or more competitors competing against each other, and team racing where teams cons ...

with the 1975 Kentucky Derby winner

Foolish Pleasure Foolish Pleasure (March 23, 1972 – November 17, 1994) was an American bay Thoroughbred race horse who won the 1975 Kentucky Derby. Background Foolish Pleasure was a bay horse bred at Williston, Florida by Waldemar Farms, Inc. He was owned by ...

on 6 July 1975 at Belmont Park and was humanely euthanized the following day. The following year the

New York Racing Association The New York Racing Association, Inc. (NYRA) is the not-for-profit corporation that operates the three largest thoroughbred horse racing tracks in the state of New York (state), New York, United States: Aqueduct Racetrack in South Ozone Park, Q ...

scheduled the inaugural running of the Ruffian Stakes on 9 October 1976 as a miles race for fillies and mares, three-year-old and older. The event was won by

Revidere Revidere (foaled in 1973 in Kentucky) was an American Thoroughbred racehorse that was voted the 1976 Eclipse Award as the American Champion Three-Year-Old Filly.Her sire was Reviewer, who is best known as the sire of champion filly Ruffian. Her d ...

who defeated the

Argentine Argentines, Argentinians or Argentineans are people from Argentina. This connection may be residential, legal, historical, or cultural. For most Argentines, several (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their ...

bred Bastonera II by 14 lengths on a sloppy track in a time of 2:01 flat.

was sired by

Reviewer A review is an evaluation of a publication, product, service, or company or a critical take on current affairs in literature, politics or culture. In addition to a critical evaluation, the review's author may assign the work a rating to indic ...

the same sire of the ill-fated Ruffian. After the first running the event was classified as

Grade I In the United Kingdom, a listed building is a structure of particular architectural or historic interest deserving of special protection. Such buildings are placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, H ...

. In 1977 the distance of the event was decreased to miles and the conditions of the event were changed to a handicap thus the name of the event became the Ruffian Handicap. In 1990 the distance was reduced once again to miles. The 2001 running of the Ruffian Handicap was cancelled due to the September 11th terrorist attacks. In 2010 and 2011 the event was moved to the

Saratoga Race Course Saratoga Race Course is a Thoroughbred horse racing track located on Union Avenue in Saratoga Springs, New York, Saratoga Springs, New York (state), New York, United States. Opened in 1863, it is often considered to be the oldest major sporting v ...

Saratoga Springs, New York Saratoga Springs is a Administrative divisions of New York#City, city in Saratoga County, New York, United States. The population was 28,491 at the United States Census 2020, 2020 census. The name reflects the presence of mineral springs in the ...

during the regular summer meeting and was run as the Ruffian Invitational Handicap over a distance of miles. In late 2011 the American Graded Stakes Committee of the

Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association The Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association (TOBA) is an American trade organization for Thoroughbred racehorse owners and breeders, which is based in Lexington, Kentucky. Founded in 1961, TOBA's stated mission is to "improve the economics, i ...

downgraded the event to

for 2012 however, NYRA did not schedule the event. The event was moved to Aqueduct Racecourse in 2013 and held in April over a distance of one mile and then returned to

in 2014 and scheduled in May where it was run on the undercard of the

Man o' War Stakes The Man o' War Stakes is a Graded stakes race, Grade II American thoroughbred horse race for horses aged four-years-old and older. It is run over a distance of one and three-eighth miles on grass, turf and is scheduled annually for early May at Be ...

on Mother's Day. That year the event became the Ruffian Stakes again in 2014 and the conditions were changed to the current format of

and

ages four-years-old and older allowed to enter. Fiftyshadesofhay won the race, giving John Velazquez his sixth win in the race, currently the leading jockey to have won this event. Outstanding mares to have won this event include Sky Beauty who won this race in 1994 with 130 pounds, Bayakoa who won the event in 1989, and Lady's Secret who won it twice, in 1985 and 1986, after which she was awarded the

Eclipse Award The Eclipse Award is an American Thoroughbred horse racing award named after the 18th-century British racehorse and sire, Eclipse. An Eclipse Award Trophy is presented to the winner in each division. The trophy is made by a few small selected A ...

for U.S. Horse of the Year. Genuine Risk, the second filly to win the

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 ...

, won it in 1980. The 2020 winner Monomoy Girl would go on and win the

Breeders' Cup Distaff The Breeders' Cup Distaff is a Weight for Age Thoroughbred horse race for fillies and mares, three years old and up. Known as the Breeders' Cup Ladies' Classic between 2008 and 2012, it is held annually at a different racetrack in the United Stat ...

Keeneland Keeneland Association, Inc. is an equine business based in Lexington, Kentucky. It includes two distinct divisions: the Keeneland Race Course, a Thoroughbred racing facility, and Keeneland Sales, a horse auction complex. It is also known for ...

and would be crowned U.S. Champion Older Female Horse. In 2024 the event was moved to Aqueduct Racetrack due to infield tunnel and redevelopment work at Belmont Park.

Records

Speed record: *1 mile – 1:34.05 Cavorting (2016) * miles – 1:40.16 Tough Tiz's Sis (2008) * miles – 1:46.80 Lady's Secret (1986) Margins: * 14 lengths –

(1976) * lengths – Tough Tiz's Sis (2008) Most wins: * 2 – Lady's Secret (1985, 1986) 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 ...

: * 6 –

John Velazquez John R. Velazquez (born November 24, 1971) is a Puerto Rican jockey in Thoroughbred horse race, Thoroughbred horse racing. He began his career in Puerto Rico and moved to New York in 1990. In 2004 and 2005 he was the United States Champion Jockey ...

(1996, 2004, 2006, 2010, 2013, 2014) Most wins by a trainer: * 3 –

Claude R. McGaughey III Claude R. "Shug" McGaughey III (born January 6, 1951) is an American Hall of Fame thoroughbred horse trainer. Biography McGaughey began working as a trainer in 1979 and to date has won more than 240 graded stakes races. In 1986, he got his big ...

(1991, 1992, 1995) * 3 – Robert J. Frankel (2003, 2004, 2007) Most wins by an owner: * 2 – Cynthia Phipps (1982, 1992) * 2 – Eugene V. Klein (1985, 1986) * 2 – Karl Watson & Paul Weitman (2008, 2014) * 2 –

Godolphin Racing Godolphin (Arabic: جودولفين) is the Maktoum family's private Thoroughbred horseracing stable and was named in honour of the Godolphin Arabian, who came from the desert to become one of the three founding stallions of the modern Thor ...

(2005, 2015)

Winners

''Notes:''
§ Ran as an

entry Entry may refer to: *Entry, West Virginia, an unincorporated community in the United States *Entry (cards), a term used in trick-taking card-games *Entry (economics), a term in connection with markets *Entry (film), ''Entry'' (film), a 2013 Indian ...

† In the 1987 running

Sacahuista {{Infobox racehorse , horsename = Sacahuista , image = , caption = , sire = Raja Baba , grandsire = Bold Ruler , dam = Nalees Flying Flag , damsire = Hoist The Flag , sex = Filly , foaled = 1984 , country = United States , colour = ...

finished first, but was disqualified for interfering with other runners in the straight. Coup De Fusil was declared the winner and Sacahuista was placed third. However, since all three placegetters were part of an

Coup De Fusil, Clabber Girl and Sacahuista the payout for first place was $2.80 as the entry's odds were 2/5.

References

{{reflist, 2 Graded stakes races in the United States Grade 2 stakes races in the United States Mile category horse races for fillies and mares Horse races in New York (state) Horse races established in 1976 1976 establishments in New York (state)

Race history

Records

Winners

See also

References