$125,000 Federico Tesio, $125,000 Weber City Miss Top April 20 Stakes
Spring Stakes Spectacular Card Marks Return of MATCH Series
Laurel to Host Decanter Reimagined Saturday, April 6

LAUREL, MD – Laurel Park will kick off its spring meet with a nine-race program Friday, April 5, the first of a 19-day stand highlighted by the Spring Stakes Spectacular April 20 featuring automatic qualifying races for the $1.5 million Preakness Stakes (G1) and $250,000 Black-Eyed Susan (G2).

Racing will be conducted Thursdays, Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays during the spring meet, which runs through Sunday, May 5. There will be no racing Easter Sunday, April 21, and a special Easter Monday program April 22.

First race post time during the spring meet will be 1:10 p.m., with a special 12:15 p.m. post time on Kentucky Derby (G1) Day, Saturday, May 4.

Winter meet-leading jockey Trevor McCarthy is named in three races Friday, while trainer Claudio Gonzalez has three horses entered as he begins his quest for a fifth consecutive Laurel meet title. The feature comes in Race 5, a one-mile allowance for Maryland-bred/sired 3-year-olds and up which drew a field of eight including one sophomore, Red Gum, most recently sixth in the Private Terms Stakes March 16 behind Kelly Rubley-trained stablemate Alwaysmining.

The highlight of the spring meet comes Saturday, April 20 with the Spring Stakes Spectacular, featuring seven stakes worth $750,000 in purses. For the fourth consecutive year, the $125,000 Xpressbet Tesio is a ‘Win and In’ qualifier for Triple Crown-nominated 3-year-olds to the 144th Preakness May 18, while the $125,000 Weber City Miss is a ‘Win and In’ event for the 95th Black-Eyed Susan for 3-year-old fillies May 17, both at legendary Pimlico Race Course.

Also on the Spring Stakes Spectacular program are the $100,000 Frank J. Whiteley Jr. for 3-year-olds and up and $100,000 Primonetta for fillies and mares 3 and older, both at six furlongs; $100,000 Henry S. Clark presented by Fidelity First and James Blackwell Real Estate for 3-year-olds and up and $100,000 Dahlia for fillies and mares 3 and up, each at a mile on turf; and the inaugural $100,000 King T. Leatherbury Stakes presented by B&B Commercial Interiors for 3-year-olds and up sprinting 5 ½ furlongs on the grass.

Nominations for all seven stakes are due Thursday, April 11.

The Leatherbury honors the Hall of Fame horseman stabled in Barn 1 at Laurel and entering his 60th season as a Thoroughbred trainer. Leatherbury, who turned 86 March 26, ranks fifth all-time with 6,501 career victories and is best known as the owner, breeder and trainer of late Mid-Atlantic legend Ben’s Cat, a winner of 32 races, 26 stakes, and more than $2.6 million in purse earnings from 2010-17.

The Whiteley, Primonetta, Dahlia and Leatherbury mark the start of the Mid-Atlantic Thoroughbred Championship (MATCH) Series, a collection of 20 races in four divisions that continues at tracks in Delaware, New Jersey and Pennsylvania leading up to its Sept. 28 conclusion at Monmouth Park.

In 2018, the MATCH Series offers $2 million in purses and more than $400,000 in bonus money. For more information on races, dates and past performances, click here:  Click here for more information

The spring meet means the return of racing over Laurel’s world-class turf course. Rebuilt by the Maryland Jockey Club starting in June 2004 and opened the following August, the 142-foot-wide course allows for six different configurations based on the position of the portable rail, each named for some of racing’s finest champions – All Along (hedge), Bowl Game (17 feet), Kelso (35 feet), Dahlia (52 feet), Exceller (70 feet) and Fort Marcy (87 feet).

In addition to live racing, Laurel will play host to Decanter Reimagined presented by the Maryland Wineries Association from noon to 5 p.m. Saturday, April 6. Tasting passes are available for $35 while brunch tickets, which include a tasting pass, are $85. For tickets and more information, click here: Click here for more information