Officials at Ellis Park have announced the creation of the Tri-State S., an overnight stakes worth $60,000 for males 3-year-olds and upward at the distance of one mile over the main track. The race will be carded Aug. 7 and will share the program with a trip of turf stakes as part of the Kentucky Downs Preview Weekend at the Henderson, Kentucky, track.
“This fills a void for older males going long on dirt,” racing secretary Dan Bork said. “We have the Good Lord for sprinters, and the mile distance out of the first-turn chute could attract sprinters stretching out another three-sixteenths of a mile as well as two-turn horses–and, of course, milers. It's the male version of our popular Groupie Doll S. for fillies and mares.”
The Tri-State revives a name used on a stakes that started on dirt and was moved to 1 1/16 miles on turf before being discontinued some years ago. Preview Weekend, which features 5 1/2-furlong, one-mile and 1 1/4-mile races for older males, has filled the niche for male turf horses, along with a new 1 1/8-mile Kentucky Downs Preview Dueling Grounds Derby for 3-year-olds.
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