The Florida Stallion Stakes is an American

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 series of Thoroughbred horse race

Thoroughbred horse race

Thoroughbred horse racing is a worldwide sport and industry involving the racing of Thoroughbred horses. It is governed by different national bodies. There are two forms of the sport: Flat racing and National Hunt racing...

s run annually at Calder Race Course

Calder Race Course

Calder Casino & Race Course is a casino and horse racetrack in Miami Gardens, Florida in the United States.-History:In the mid-1960s, real estate developer Stephen A. Calder envisioned summertime racing in Florida; in 1965, on the advice of Mr. Calder, the Florida Legislature approved a bill...

 in Miami Gardens, Florida

Miami Gardens, Florida

Miami Gardens is a Miami suburban city located in Miami-Dade County, Florida. The city name comes from one of the major roadways through the area, Miami Gardens Drive. According to the 2010 U.S...

. Created in 1982 to benefit the Florida

Florida

Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...

 Thoroughbred

Thoroughbred

The Thoroughbred is a horse breed best known for its use in horse racing. Although the word thoroughbred is sometimes used to refer to any breed of purebred horse, it technically refers only to the Thoroughbred breed...

 breeding

Horse breeding

Horse breeding is reproduction in horses, and particularly the human-directed process of selective breeding of animals, particularly purebred horses of a given breed. Planned matings can be used to produce specifically desired characteristics in domesticated horses...

 industry, it is open to two-year-olds sired by a nominated Florida stallion

Stallion (horse)

A stallion is a male horse that has not been gelded .Stallions will follow the conformation and phenotype of their breed, but within that standard, the presence of hormones such as testosterone may give stallions a thicker, "cresty" neck, as well as a somewhat more muscular physique as compared to...

 and raced over three months at increasing distances.

In order for a horse to run in the Florida Stallion Stakes series, their sire

Sire

Sire may refer to:* Father, the counterpart of a dam, particularly in animal breeding. See also stallion* James W. Sire, author on worldviews* Sire Records, a record label* Sire Advertising, an advertising agency...

 must have been nominated each year for a set fee which makes all of that stallions' foals eligible to participate. Graduated payments

Graduated payments

Graduated Payments are repayment terms involving gradual increases in the payments on a closed-end obligation. A graduated payment loan typically involves negative amortization, and is intended for young people who currently have low income but foresee a greater future income...

 are required over a nineteen-month period in order to maintain the foals' eligibility.

In 1984, Smile became the first horse to ever win all three legs of the Florida Stallion Stakes.

Florida Stallion Stakes

Each race is named in honor of a horse bred in Florida.

Two-year-old filly divisions:

• Desert Vixen Stakes - 6 furlongs in August
• Susan's Girl Stakes - 7 furlongs in September
• My Dear Girl Stakes - 8.5 furlongs (1¹/16 miles) in October

Two-year-old male divisions:

• Dr. Fager Stakes - 6 furlongs in August
• Affirmed Stakes - 7 furlongs in September
• In Reality Stakes - 8.5 furlongs (1¹/16 miles) in October