Coaching Club American Oaks boasts a rich history of filly excellence

Fifteen Hall of Fame members have won the prestigious 3-year-old feature

For more than a century, the Coaching Club American Oaks has been one of the elite races for 3-year-old fillies in the United States. Its list of notable winners reads like a who’s who of the greatest of the gender. Princess Doreen, Top Flight, Twilight Tear, Real Delight, Bowl of Flowers, Dark Mirage, Shuvee, Chris Evert, Ruffian, Davona Dale, Bold ‘n Determined, Mom’s Command, Open Mind, Sky Beauty, Ashado. All of those immortals of the turf won the Coaching Club American Oaks en route to the Hall of Fame. Few races boast such a distinguished history.

In recent years, the race has been won by champions such as Monomoy Girl, Abel Tasman, Songbird, and Questing to continue that tradition of excellence. Set to be run today for the 104th time (race 10, 6:16 p.m. post), the Grade 1 Coaching Club American Oaks was inaugurated in 1917 at Belmont Park and named in honor of the Coaching Club of America. The race was annually held at Belmont — other than during construction years in the 1960s when it took place at Aqueduct — until being moved to Saratoga in 2010.

The New York Citybased Coaching Club of America (sometimes referred to as the New York Coaching Club) required its members to have the ability to handle a coach and four horses with a single group of reins. The organization was formed in New York City in 1875 to encourage four-inhand driving throughout America. There were regular events, dinners, and annual parades through Central Park.

Hall of Fame member August Belmont II established the original conditions of the Coaching Club American Oaks to mimic those of the Epsom Oaks in England. The race has been run at 1⅛ miles, 1⅛ miles, 1¼ miles, and 1½ miles. Prior to 1928, it was contested as a handicap. Since being moved to Saratoga, the Coaching Club American Oaks has been run at 1⅛ miles.

Along with the numerous great horses counted among its winners, the Coaching Club American Oaks has been a feather in the cap of many of the greatest trainers and jockeys of the sport. Todd Pletcher, who becomes eligible for the Hall of Fame in 2021, has won the race a record seven times. In the irons, active Hall of Fame riders John Velazquez and Mike Smith share the record with five wins apiece while Hall of Famers Jorge Velasquez and Jerry Bailey both won it four times.

Along with the Acorn Stakes and Mother Goose Stakes, the Coaching Club American Oaks was part of the old New York Filly Triple Tiara series at Belmont. Dark Mirage was the first to sweep the series in 1968 and was followed by Shuvee (1969), Chris Evert (1974), Ruffian (1975), Davona Dale (1979), Mom’s Command (1985), Open Mind (1989), and Sky Beauty (1993) in winning all three.

For many fans, Ruffian’s 1975 win in the Coaching Club American Oaks was

the most memorable in the race’s history, as it was the final victory of her remarkable career. In winning her 10th career race without a defeat, the dark bay wonder filly equaled the race’s 12-furlong record of 2:27 before a crowd of 30,844 at Belmont. Ruffian led all the way en route to a comfortable 2¾-length victory. Jockey Jacinto Vasquez never needed the whip. In sweeping the Triple Tiara, Ruffian won the series by a combined 24½ lengths. Her record-tying performance in the Coaching Club American Oaks (matching the mark set by Magazine in 1973) came on the heels of her setting new stakes records in each of her previous seven addedmoney events.

“She just runs easy,” said the Hall of Famer Vasquez after the race. “I pushed her a little in the final 16th, but that was all.”

Sadly, Ruffian’s Coaching Club American Oaks was her final moment of glory on the track. Two weeks later, the daughter of Reviewer and Shenanigans met a tragic demise when she broke down in a match race against Kentucky Derby winner Foolish Pleasure. Efforts to save the mighty filly proved unsuccessful and she was buried in the Belmont Park infield.

Regarded by many as the greatest filly or mare of the 20th century, Ruffian was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1976.

Brien Bouyea is the Hall of Fame and Communications Director at the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame and a former Saratogian sports editor. He is the author of two books, including “The Travers: 150 Years of Saratoga’s Greatest Race,” available at www.traversbook.com.