Hollywood Casino at Charles Town Races has released its 2024 stakes schedule following approval by the West Virginia Racing Commission at its meeting Jan. 23.
Charles Town's biggest day on the 2024 calendar follows up on a format that started in 2020, as Charles Town presents both of its graded stakes—the $1 million Charles Town Classic (G2) and $750,000 Charles Town Oaks (G2)—on the same Aug. 23 card. The Classic and Oaks card begins with a special first post at 5 p.m. ET.
The newly upgraded Charles Town Oaks will be run as a grade 2 for the first time, one year after the race received a purse increase to $750,000, making it the richest dirt sprint for 3-year-old fillies in North America. Last year's edition was won by Vahva for trainer Cherie DeVaux and jockey John Velazquez. Vahva went on to capture the Lexus Raven Run Stakes (G2) at Keeneland in her subsequent start, and the daughter of top stallion Gun Runner and 2012 Charles Town Oaks runner-up Holiday Soiree remains in training as one of the leaders of the female sprint division.
Daniel Alonso's Skippylongstocking captured the track's signature event in 2023, taking the Charles Town Classic in wire-to-wire fashion under jockey Tyler Gaffalione for trainer Saffie Joseph Jr. Skippylongstocking and stablemate O'Connor, runner-up in the 2023 Classic, will both look to add to their resumes Jan. 27 in the $3 million Pegasus World Cup Invitational (G1) at Gulfstream Park.
In addition to the Charles Town Oaks, one other unrestricted stakes on the Classic undercard—the Robert Hilton Memorial for 3-year-olds—received an upgrade from the American Graded Stakes Committee, and now will be run under listed status.
Given the recent success of the Hilton and the Misty Bennett Pink Ribbon, both races received purse hikes to $500,000 for 2024.
"When we made the decision to increase the purses for the Oaks and the Hilton last year, we felt like those races had the greatest potential for improvements in their metrics," said Charlie McIntosh, Charles Town's director of racing operations. "We were incredibly pleased that the TOBA graded stakes committee recognized the consistent improvement in the quality of those races, and we feel like boosting the purses for both the Hilton and Misty Bennett Pink Ribbon to $500,000 will give each race the best opportunity to maximize its potential."
Since moving the Charles Town Classic and Oaks to the same card in 2020, the blockbuster program has produced four of the five largest single-card handles in track history, including last year's record-setting $7,976,942, shattering the previous mark of $7,179,783 set on the 2021 Classic card.
Charles Town's 2024 stakes schedule features 20 stakes races worth just shy of $4 million in total purses. These totals exclude the West Virginia Breeders' Classics XXXVIII card scheduled for Oct. 12, with purses to be announced later for the state's premier night for West Virginia-breds. For the second time, all non-Futurity or Breeders Classics' state-bred stakes races will be run for $75,000 in 2024. The stakes schedule kicks off April 13 with the Original Gold Stakes for West Virginia-bred fillies and mares.
The 2024 racing calendar calls for 158 days of live racing, including a Wednesday-through-Saturday schedule in January, February, November, and December. Racing will be Thursdays through Fridays for the remainder of the year. Post time for all but the Charles Town Classic and Oaks card is 7 p.m. ET.
This press release has been edited for content and style by BloodHorse Staff.
