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Wood Memorial (GII)

Aqueduct • New York, NY, USA 100-50-25-15-10
April 6, 2024

Wood Memorial Stakes Race History 

augurated in 1925, the Wood Memorial (G2) has long been an important proving ground for Kentucky Derby (G1) contenders. Originally held over a mile and 70 yards (and later 1 1/16 miles) at Jamaica Race Course, the Wood Memorial is named in memory of the late Eugene D. Wood, a New York politician who served as Jamaica’s president for over two decades.

The Wood Memorial wasted no time cementing Wood’s name in the annals of racing history. During an unforgettable golden age spanning 1930 through 1951, the Wood Memorial produced no fewer than nine Kentucky Derby winners. Triple Crown champions Gallant Fox (1930), Omaha (1935), Count Fleet (1943), and Assault (1946) were the stars of the show, but Twenty Ground (1931), Johnstown (1939), Hoop Jr. (1945), Middgleground (1950), and Count Turf (1951) also enhanced the Wood Memorial’s early legacy.

The Wood Memorial underwent its first dry spell between 1952 and 1972, during which only one Kentucky Derby winner (Carry Back, 1961) used the race as a prep for his signature victory under the Twin Spires. It was a time of upheaval for the Wood Memorial; the race was lengthened from 1 1/16 miles to 1 1/8 miles in 1952 and shifted from Jamaica to Aqueduct in 1960.

However, a fiery chestnut soon set the race back on track. Although Secretariat was beaten in third in the 1973 Wood Memorial, the legendary superhorse quickly rebounded with a record-shattering sweep of the Triple Crown. During the ensuing decade, Foolish Pleasure (1975), Bold Forbes (1976), Triple Crown winner Seattle Slew (1977), famous filly Genuine Risk (1980), and Pleasant Colony (1981) all followed Secretariat’s path to Derby glory, with all but Genuine Risk winning both the Wood Memorial and the Run for the Roses.

This flurry of activity preceded another lengthy dry spell. More than a dozen years passed before Wood Memorial runner-up Go for Gin sprung an upset in the 1994 Kentucky Derby. The early 2000s witnessed a temporary return to form as the Wood Memorial produced three Derby winners in four years: Fusaichi Pegasus (2000), Monarchos (2001), and Funny Cide (2003). But the remainder of the decade was quiet, and in the 2010s not a single Wood Memorial starter visited the Kentucky Derby winner’s circle.

The COVID-19 outbreak prompted the cancelation of the 2020 Wood Memorial, starting the new decade on a down note. But as a final-tier Road to the Kentucky Derby prep race awarding 170 qualification points (100-50-25-15-10) to the top four finishers, it’s likely just a matter of time before the Wood Memorial bounces back to its glory day.

By J. Keeler Johnson/TwinSpires.com

Results

Win

Place

Show

1

Resilience100

$11.00

$6.30

$4.60

11

Society Man50

$54

$27.80

5

Protective25

$13.20

3

Lonesome Boy15

13

Uncle Heavy10

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Entries

Jockey

Owner

Trainer

Current odds

Wagers

1

Resilience

John R. Velazquez

Emily Bushnell and Ric Waldman

Bill Mott

6/1

2

El Grande O

Dylan Davis

Barry K. Schwartz

Linda Rice

8/1

3

Lonesome Boy

Adam Bowman

John E. Parker

Hugo O. Padilla

50/1

4

Deterministic

Joel Rosario

St. Elias Stable, Ken Langone, Steven C. Duncker and Vicarage Stable

Cristophe Clement

7/5

5

Protective

Kendrick Carmouche

Repole Stable

Todd Pletcher

30/1

6

Evening News

Jareth Loveberry

Travin Stables

Michael V. Pino

20/1

7

Merit

Edwin Gonzalez

Peter E. Blum Thoroughbreds LLC

Saffie A. Joseph Jr.

20/1

8

Elysian Meadows

Jose Lezcano

Team Penney Racing

Bill Mott

15/1

9

Tuscan Sky

Manuel Franco

Spendthrift Farm LLC

Todd Pletcher

4/1

10

Gettysburg Address

Emmanuel Esquivel

Gervais Racing

Dallas Stewart

30/1

11

Society Man

Luis R. Rivera Jr.

West Paces Racing LLC, Danny Gargan and GMP Stables LLC

Danny Gargan

30/1

12

Deposition

Dexter Haddock

Uriah St. Lewis

Uriah St. Lewis

50/1

13

Uncle Heavy

Mychel J. Sanchez

Michael Milam and LC Racing LLC

Robert E. Reid Jr.

8/1

Road to the Kentucky Derby

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