Derby Trial renamed for Pat Day
Churchill Downs released its 2015 spring stakes schedule Friday with something of a bombshell for racing traditionalists: the Derby Trial is no longer.
Run in recent years as the opening-night feature of the spring meet, the Derby Trial has been renamed the Pat Day Mile and moved to the Kentucky Derby undercard. The $200,000 race will maintain its Grade 3 status.
In place of the Derby Trial on opening night, April 25, Churchill is using a new $100,000 sprint for 3-year-olds named the William Walker, honoring the jockey of the 1877 Derby winner, Baden-Baden.
The Derby Trial used to be an important Kentucky Derby prep, but the last Derby winner to run in both races was Tim Tam in 1958. The 2014 running was won by Embellishing Bob on the disqualification of Bayern.
“We’ve been kicking around the idea of moving the Derby Trial to Kentucky Derby Day for a couple of years now because the race is clearly not a significant step to the Derby anymore, with the way horsemen train their horses today,” Ben Huffman, Churchill’s director of racing, said in a news release. “We revere the storied history of the race but ultimately feel that a one-turn mile race with familiar 3-year-olds that aren’t up to the 1 1/4-mile distance could prove to be very popular with both horsemen and fans alike on Kentucky Derby Day.”
Among the other tweaks to the 2015 schedule are $100,000 purse hikes for a pair of Grade 2 races, the $400,000 Alysheba and $500,000 Churchill Downs. In all, 25 stakes worth more than $8 million are set for a 38-day spring meet that runs through June 27.
Aside from multistakes cards on Kentucky Oaks and Derby days (May 1-2), the spring schedule also includes multistakes night programs on June 13 (Grade 1 Stephen Foster and three others) and closing night (Grade 2 Firecracker and two 2-year-old stakes).
2015 spring stakes schedule
| DATE | EVENT | CONDITIONS | DISTANCE | PURSE |
| Sat., April 25 | William Walker | 3YO | 6 furlongs | $100,000 |
| Fri., May 1 | Kentucky Oaks (G1) | 3YO F | 1 1/8 miles | $1,000,000 |
| Fri., May 1 | La Troienne (G1) | 4YO & Up F&M | 1 1/16 miles | $300,000 |
| Fri., May 1 | Alysheba (G2) | 4YO & Up | 1 1/16 miles | $400,000 |
| Fri., May 1 | Eight Belles (G3) | 3YO F | 7 furlongs | $200,000 |
| Fri., May 1 | Twin Spires Turf Sprint (G3) | 4YO & Up | 5 furlongs (T) | $150,000 |
| Fri., May 1 | Edgewood (G3) | 3YO F | 1 1/16 miles (T) | $150,000 |
| Sat., May 2 | Kentucky Derby (G1) | 3YO | 1 1/4 miles | $2,000,000 |
| Sat., May 2 | Woodford Reserve (G1) | 4YO & Up | 1 1/8 miles (T) | $500,000 |
| Sat., May 2 | Humana Distaff (G1) | 4YO & Up F&M | 7 furlongs | $300,000 |
| Sat., May 2 | Churchill Downs (G2) | 4YO & Up | 7 furlongs | $500,000 |
| Sat., May 2 | Churchill Distaff Turf Mile (G2) | 4YO & Up F&M | 1 mile (T) | $300,000 |
| Sat., May 2 | American Turf (G2) | 3YO | 1 1/16 miles (T) | $250,000 |
| Sat., May 2 | Pat Day Mile (G3) | 3YO | 1 mile | $200,000 |
| Sat., May 23 | Louisville Handicap (G3) | 3YO & Up | 1 1/2 miles (T) | $100,000 |
| Mon., May 25 | Winning Colors (G3) | 3YO & Up F&M | 6 furlongs | $100,000 |
| Sat., May 30 | Aristides (G3) | 3YO & Up | 6 furlongs | $100,000 |
| Sat., June 6 | Mint Julep (G3) | 3YO & Up F&M | 1 1/16 miles (T) | $100,000 |
| Sat., June 13 | Stephen Foster Handicap (G1) | 3YO & Up | 1 1/8 miles | $500,000 |
| Sat., June 13 | Fleur de Lis Handicap (G2) | 3YO & Up F&M | 1 1/8 miles | $200,000 |
| Sat., June 13 | Matt Winn (G3) | 3YO | 1 1/16 miles | $100,000 |
| Sat., June 13 | Regret (G3) | 3YO F | 1 1/8 miles (T) | $100,000 |
| Sat., June 27 | Firecracker (G2) | 3YO & Up | 1 mile (T) | $200,000 |
| Sat., June 27 | Bashford Manor (G3) | 2YO | 6 furlongs | $100,000 |
| Sat., June 27 | Debutante | 2YO F | 6 furlongs | $100,000 |