Harness: Purses for New York Sire Stakes finals to get a boost in 2025

The New York Sire Stakes will award record purses for all three series finals next season, as well as a significant increase to the Breeders Award program in 2025. The Agriculture & New York State Horse Breeding Development Fund Board approved today the following purse totals for the 2025 Series Finals:

New York Sire Stakes finals: $300,000
Excelsior Series finals: $100,000
County Fair Series finals: $25,000

The Breeders Awards program, which provides rewards for each level of New York Sire Stakes racing, will now offer $1.75 million to be distributed to eligible breeders for the 2025 season. The awards are based on residency, and are available to breeders who breed their mares to New York-registered stallions and keep those mares in New York for at least 180 consecutive days during the calendar year including conception. For more information, visit nysirestakes.com/breeding/

"Harness racing is part of the fabric of New York's culture, and this notable investment helps support and grow the industry into 2025 and beyond," said Agriculture & New York State Horse Breeding Development Fund Executive Director Ralph Scunziano. "On the heels of a 2024 season that featured successful statewide investment in racetracks through the County Fair Repair Reimbursement Program, these new purse and award increases will continue the New York Sire Stakes' positive momentum."

The Fund also announced that the New York Sires Stakes will add a new stakes race for 2-year-olds in 2025, featuring a purse totaling $1 million.

► Sign up for our FREE DRF Harness Digest Newsletter

The Fund, which promotes agriculture through the breeding of Standardbred horses and equine research in New York, administers the New York Sire Stakes. The New York Sire Stakes serves as a model for in-state breeding and racing programs and is the nation's oldest harness racing program of its kind.

The New York Sire Stakes hosts its 2024 "Day of Champions" tomorrow, Saturday, September 7 at historic Yonkers Raceway in Yonkers, NY. Click here for more information.

The "Day of Champions" marks the second of three 2024 Series finals that the New York Sire Stakes conducts, followed by the Excelsior Series finals that take place on Friday, September 13, at Vernon Downs Casino Hotel in Vernon. The County Fair Series finals were held at Goshen Historic Track on Sunday, September 1. For more information, visit nysirestakes.com.

--press release (Agriculture & NYS Horse Breeding Development Fund)--