In yet another example of the emphasis of turf racing in New York, the New York Racing Association is instituting what it calls the Turf Triple Series, which consists of three turf races for 3-year-old males and three for females. The Turf Trinity, for colts and geldings, will consist of the Grade 1 Belmont Derby (1 1/4 miles on July 6), the Saratoga Derby (1 3/16 miles on Aug. 4), and the Jockey Club Derby (1 1/2 miles on Sept. 7 at Belmont Park). The purse of each race will be $1 million, and the Jockey Club Derby has been designated a Win and You’re In race for the $4 million Breeders’ Cup Turf, to be held on Nov. 2 at Santa Anita. The Turf Tiara, for 3-year-old fillies, will consist of the Belmont Oaks (1 1/4 miles on July 6), the Saratoga Oaks (1 3/16 miles on Aug. 2), and the Jockey Club Oaks (1 3/8 miles on Sept. 7 at Belmont Park). The purse of each of those races will be $750,000. If a horse can win all three races in its division, the owner will be awarded a yet-to-be-designed trophy. The Turf Triple is the creation of Martin Panza, NYRA’s senior vice president of racing operations. In 2014, Panza moved the Grade 1 Jamaica and Grade 1 Garden City from the fall to the summer and renamed those races the Belmont Derby and Belmont Oaks. The Saratoga Derby and Oaks and the Jockey Club Derby and Oaks are new races and do not replace an existing race. By doing this, Panza is hopeful those four races can attain Grade 1 status sooner. “I have to carry five years of history of the Group 2’s and Group 3’s,” he said. “This way in two years they’re eligible to become Grade 1’s.” Existing NYRA turf stakes for 3-year-olds such as the Hall of Fame Stakes at Saratoga in August and the Hill Prince at Belmont in the fall are expected to be shortened in distance. The Saratoga Derby will impinge upon the Secretariat Stakes, a Grade 1 turf race for 3-year-olds at Arlington Park typically run at 1 3/16 miles and held in mid-August. Chris Polzin, the director of racing at Arlington Park, said Panza apprised him of NYRA’s plans and the Secretariat will be shortened to a mile. Its purse will be raised to $500,000 (from $400,000) and it will be run on Aug. 10, as usual, on the same card as the Arlington Million. “The separation in distance is going to be okay,” Polzin said. “The same horses that run a mile and three sixteenths aren’t going to run a mile.” Panza said he knows the Turf Triple won’t be as popular as the well-established dirt Triple Crown for 3-year-olds, but he believes the 3-year-olds of both genders would benefit from a series of turf races throughout the summer that until now hadn’t existed. “It really gives the 3-year-olds a pattern to follow and races to run in,” he said. “It’s got to create more value. Then, when you got the 4-year-old races, you’ve got the [Old Forester] race at Churchill that’s $1 million, the Manhattan’s $1 million, and the Arlington Million. There’s suddenly ways to make money with a turf horse.” Chad Brown, the three-time Eclipse Award-winning trainer, has been the biggest participant in the Belmont Derby and Oaks, having started 20 horses in those races over their existence. He has won the Belmont Oaks three times. “I think it’s a great idea,” Brown said Wednesday from Florida. “We have a lot of horses in this division. I’m excited to participate in this series. I’m optimistic it’ll be something that will grow and be around for a while.” These races could also help the sales and stallion markets. John Sikura, president of Hill ‘n’ Dale Farm, which stands top turf stallion Kitten’s Joy as well as Flintshire, praised the idea. “It helps not only to create domestic demand, but it entices European horses to come to America to run,” Sikura said. “Selfishly, it creates more demand and you can sell more seasons. On a broader evaluation, it’s good for the business, and when it’s good for the business it’s good for the individuals who participate in the business.” Panza said the Stars and Stripes card on July 6 is the second biggest day, business-wise, of the Belmont spring-summer meet, behind only Belmont Stakes Day. He hopes the addition of the Jockey Club Derby and Oaks adds some interest to the opening weekend of the Belmont fall meet, which has gotten lost as the Saratoga meet has expanded. “The ability to create another day at Belmont on Sept. 7 we think is very positive,” Panza said. “It’s not a bad thing to have something big at the start of the meet when we come down from Saratoga.” The Belmont Derby and Oaks and the Jockey Club Derby and Oaks will be televised live by NBC. The Saratoga Derby will be on Fox Sports 1 the day before the Whitney, and the Saratoga Oaks will be on Fox Sports 2 the day after the Whitney.