Man o' War Stakes

The Man o' War Stakes is a Thoroughbred horse race at Belmont Park in Elmont, New York. Now raced in mid-May, it is a Grade I event offering a purse of $400,000 and is open to horses four-years-old and up. At one and three-eighths miles on the grass, the race sometimes attracts top European horses such as Fantastic Light and Daylami. The top finishers in the Man o' War Stakes often go on to run in the Breeders' Cup Turf.

The inaugural running of the Man o' War took place in 1959 at Aqueduct Racetrack where it was also held in 1961, as well as from 1963 to 1967, and again in 1987. Run as the Man o' War Handicap in 1959 and 1961, it is named for Man o' War, selected as No. 1 in the Blood-Horse magazine List of the Top 100 U.S. Racehorses of the 20th Century. The race was won in 1973 by Secretariat.

In 2008 the Man o' War was moved from Belmont's fall schedule into its summer schedule, replacing the Bowling Green Handicap in an attempt to more fairly represent turf competition.

The Man o' War Stakes has been raced at various distances:

• 1 ¹⁄₂ miles (12 furlongs) - 1959, 1960, 1962, 1968-1977
• 1 ⁵⁄₈ miles (13 furlongs) - 1961, 1963-1967
• 1 ³⁄₈ miles (11 furlongs) - since 1978

Records

Time record:

• 2:11.65 - Better Talk Now (2005) (at current 1 ³⁄₈ miles)
• 2:24.80 - Secretariat (1973) (at previous 1 ¹⁄₂ miles)

Most wins:

• 2 - Majesty's Prince (1983, 1984)
• 2 - Solar Splendor (1991, 1992)
• 2 - Gio Ponti (2009, 2010)
• 2 - With Anticipation (2001, 2002)

Most wins by an owner:

• 3 - Rokeby Stable (1970, 1971, 1986)
• 3 - Phipps Stable (2012, 2013, 2014)

Most wins by a jockey:

• 5 - Jorge Velasquez (1968, 1969, 1970, 1975, 1979)

Most wins by a trainer:

• 4 - MacKenzie Miller (1966, 1969, 1975, 1986)

Winners of the Man o' War Stakes since 1959