Charitable Annuity won the big race in 2015. Photo by Coady Photography.
From a Hollywood Casino at Charles Town Races release
The $500,000 West Virginia Breeders’ Classic will highlight a nine-race program worth a total of $1,170,000 in stakes purses when Hollywood Casino at Charles Town Races hosts West Virginia Breeders’ Classics XXX on Saturday, October 8. The $1,170,000 in purses for the 2016 edition of the West Virginia Breeders’ Classics represents a $90,000 increase over the purses available for the event in 2015.
As has been the case since West Virginia Breeders’ Classics founders Sam Huff and Carol Holden put on the inaugural event in 1987, the richest race on the card will be the West Virginia Breeders’ Classic for horses 3&up going 1 1/8 miles. Originally run for $100,000 in 1987, the $500,000 Breeders’ Classic now stands as the country’s richest state-bred contest. Last year’s running was captured by Mark Russell’s Charitable Annuity who topped a field that included past Breeders’ Classic winners Russell Road and Lucy’s Bob Boy.
Similar to recent Breeders’ Classics cards is the return of the $150,000 West Virginia Cavada Breeders’ Classic as the top supporting stakes race on the program. For fillies and mares ages three and up going Charles Town’s two-turn, seven-furlong distance, the Cavada was won in 2015 by Terri Catlett’s Cuppa Mocha Mojo, who provided trainer David Walters with a record third victory in the race.
Four races – the West Virginia Division of Tourism Breeders’ Classic, West Virginia Lottery Breeders’ Classic, Triple Crown Nutrition Breeders’ Classic and Vincent Moscarelli Memorial Breeders’ Classic – all received purse bumps of $15,000 to $75,000 for West Virginia Breeders’ Classics XXX. Similarly, the remaining three races on the card received $10,000 purse increases with the West Virginia Breeders’ Classic Distaff and Onion Juice Breeders’ Classic now being contested for $80,000 and the West Virginia Dash for Cash being run for $60,000 as opposed to the $50,000 purse it carried in 2015.
The full lineup of races for the 2016 West Virginia Breeders’ Classics will be:
- $500,000 West Virginia Breeders’ Classic, 3&up, 1 1/8 miles
- $150,000 West Virginia Cavada Breeders’ Classic, F&M 3&up, 7 furlongs
- $80,000 West Virginia Breeders’ Classic Distaff, F&M 3&up, 1 1/8 miles
- $80,000 West Virginia Thoroughbred Breeders’ Association Onion Juice Breeders’ Classic, 3&up, 7 furlongs
- $75,000 West Virginia Division of Tourism Breeders’ Classic, F 3YO, 7 furlongs
- $75,000 West Virginia Lottery Breeders’ Classic, 3YO, 7 furlongs
- $75,000 West Virginia Triple Crown Nutrition Breeders’ Classic, F 2YO, 6 1/2 furlongs
- $75,000 West Virginia Vincent Moscarelli Memorial Breeders’ Classic, 2YO, 6 1/2 furlongs
- $60,000 West Virginia Dash for Cash Breeders’ Classic, 3&up, 4 1/2 furlongs
Post time for the first race on October 8 will be 7:00 P.M. EST with the featured $500,000 Breeders’ Classic being shown live on a Comcast Mid-Atlantic broadcast later in the evening while TVG2 will provide in-studio coverage of much of the card.
In addition to announcing purses for the 2016 West Virginia Breeders’ Classics, Charles Town was also given permission by the West Virginia Racing Commission at its Tuesday morning meeting to add three days to the remainder of its 2016 live racing calendar. As a result, Charles Town will now conduct live racing on October 12 and 13, as well as December 30 in addition to its preexisting live schedule.
