Sunshine Millions Turf
Encyclopedia
The Sunshine Millions Turf Stakes is a race
for thoroughbred
horses held in January at Santa Anita Park
in Arcadia, California
or at Gulfstream Park
in Hallandale Beach, Florida
. Half the eight races of the Sunshine Millions are run at one track and half at the other.
Open to four-year-olds and older willing to race one and one/eighth miles on the turf
, the Sunshine Millions Turf is an ungraded stakes
event but carries a purse of $500,000. This race is also known as the Cloverleaf Farms Turf (in 2006) as part of the eight-race Sunshine Millions
series.
In its 9th running in 2011, the series of races called the Sunshine Millions are restricted to horses bred either in Florida
or in California
and is the brainchild of the Thoroughbred Owners of California, the California Thoroughbred Breeders’ Association, the Florida Thoroughbred Breeders’ and Owners’ Association, Inc., Santa Anita Park, Gulfstream Park, and Magna Entertainment Corporation.
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...
for 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...
horses held in January at Santa Anita Park
Santa Anita Park
Santa Anita Park is a thoroughbred racetrack in Arcadia, California, United States. It offers some of the prominent racing events in the United States during the winter and in spring. With its backdrop of the purple San Gabriel Mountains, it is considered by many as the world's most beautiful race...
in Arcadia, California
Arcadia, California
Arcadia is an affluent city in Los Angeles County, California, United States, and located approximately northeast of downtown Los Angeles in the San Gabriel Valley and at the base of the San Gabriel Mountains....
or at Gulfstream Park
Gulfstream Park
Gulfstream Park Racing & Casino is a racetrack and county-approved racino in Hallandale Beach, Florida, in the United States. During its annual meet, which spans December through April, it is one of the most important venues for horse racing in America....
in Hallandale Beach, Florida
Hallandale Beach, Florida
Hallandale Beach is a city in Broward County, Florida, United States. The city is named after Luther Halland, a worker for Henry Flagler's Florida East Coast Railroad. As of the 2010 census, the population was 37,113...
. Half the eight races of the Sunshine Millions are run at one track and half at the other.
Open to four-year-olds and older willing to race one and one/eighth miles on the turf
Sod
Sod or turf is grass and the part of the soil beneath it held together by the roots, or a piece of thin material.The term sod may be used to mean turf grown and cut specifically for the establishment of lawns...
, the Sunshine Millions Turf is an ungraded stakes
Graded stakes race
A graded stakes race is a term applied since 1973 by the American Graded Stakes Committee of the Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association to thoroughbred horse races in the United States and Canada to describe races that derive their name from the stake, or entry fee, owners must pay...
event but carries a purse of $500,000. This race is also known as the Cloverleaf Farms Turf (in 2006) as part of the eight-race Sunshine Millions
Sunshine Millions
The Sunshine Millions is a series of American races for thoroughbred horses held in January at Santa Anita Park in Arcadia, California or at Gulfstream Park in Hallandale Beach, Florida...
series.
In its 9th running in 2011, the series of races called the Sunshine Millions are restricted to horses bred either in 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...
or in California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
and is the brainchild of the Thoroughbred Owners of California, the California Thoroughbred Breeders’ Association, the Florida Thoroughbred Breeders’ and Owners’ Association, Inc., Santa Anita Park, Gulfstream Park, and Magna Entertainment Corporation.
Past winners
- 2011 - CaracortadoCaracortadoCaracortado is an American Thoroughbred racehorse. His sire, Cat Dreams, is a son of the influential stallion Storm Cat. His dam, Mons Venus, is by Maria's Mon, the American Champion Two-Year-Old Male Horse of 1995 who won the Sanford Stakes, the Champagne Stakes, and the Belmont Futurity Stakes...
(Cal-bred) (Joe Talamo) - 2010 - Jet Propulsion (Fla-bred) (Julien LeparouxJulien LeparouxJulien R. Leparoux is a Champion jockey currently racing in the United States.Leparoux, grew up in a racing family, the son of a jockey turned assistant trainer. He worked at the Chantilly Racecourse as a stable hand and in January 2003 emigrated to California to work as an exercise rider for...
) - 2009 - Soldier's Dancer (Fla-bred) (Rafael Bejarano) (Presious PassionPresious PassionPresious Passion is a multiple Grade I winning Thoroughbred racehorse. Bred in the United States, he is a gelded son of multiple Grade I winner Royal Anthem and the unraced mare, Princesa's Passion, who comes from an extended family of stakes winning horses. Presious Passion's career has included...
placed.) - 2008 - War Monger (Fla-bred) (Kent DesormeauxKent DesormeauxKent Jason Desormeaux is an American thoroughbred horse racing Hall of Fame jockey who holds the U.S. record for most races won in a single year, 1989.-Brief biography:...
- 2007 - Lava ManLava ManLava Man is a dark bay thoroughbred gelding by Slew City Slew out of L'il Ms. Leonard . He who rose from the lowest levels of race horse claiming races to become regarded by many racing fans and members of the racing media as a legend in his own time...
(Cal-bred) (Corey NakataniCorey NakataniCorey S. Nakatani is an American Thoroughbred horse racing jockey. He got his big break in 1990 when he rode Itsallgreektome to win big stakes races.Nakatani currently resides at Belmont Park...
) - 2006 - Miesque's Approval (Fla-bred) (Eddie CastroEddie CastroEddie Castro is a Panamanian-born jockey in American Thoroughbred horse racing. He grew up on a produce farm in Panama where he learned to ride saddle horses. Influenced by the accomplishments of other local jockeys, Castro attended the Panamanian jockey school and began riding in races in...
) - 2005 - Star Over The BayStar Over The BayStar Over The Bay was a Thoroughbred racehorse who rose from the claimer ranks for $80,000. Once he began winning his races, he earned more than $700,000...
(Fla-bred) (Tyler BazeTyler BazeTyler Baze is an American Champion jockey. Born into a racing family, both of his parents were jockeys as is his uncle, Gary Baze. His second cousin is U.S. Racing Hall of Fame jockey, Russell Baze....
) - 2004 - Proud Man (Fla-bred) (Rene R. DouglasRene R. DouglasRene R. Douglas Panama is a jockey in American Thoroughbred horse racing. Born into a Thoroughbred racing family, after attending jockey school Douglas rode in his native Panama for a year and a half before moving to the United States in 1983. His first major win came in 1989 in the prestigious...
) - 2003 - Adminniestrator (Cal-bred) (Martin PedrozaMartin A. PedrozaMartin A. Pedroza is a jockey in American Thoroughbred horse racing.Pedroza trained at the Panama jockey school and in 1981 rode his first winner at Hipódromo Presidente Remón in Panama City...
)