# City of Hope Mile Stakes

The City of Hope Mile Stakes is a Grade II American Thoroughbred horse race for horses aged three years old or older over the distance of one mile on the turf scheduled annually in September at Santa Anita Park in Arcadia, California. The event currently carries a purse of $200,000.

## History

The event was inaugurated on 4 October 1986 as the Colonel F. W. Koester Handicap at the Oak Tree Racing Association meeting at Santa Anita Park as the eighth race on the racecard and was won by the US Hall of Fame, Charles E. Whittingham trained Palace Music who broke the track record for the distance that was set by Pettrax in 20 April 1986. Palace Music in his next start would just fail winning the Breeders' Cup Mile finishing a head second to Last Tycoon. Colonel F. W. Koester was part of 1932 US Equestrian team, later was the General Manager of the California Thoroughbred Breeders Association from 1955 to 1969 and was elected into the California Racing Hall of Fame in 1988.
In 1989 the event was classified by the American Graded Stakes Committee as Grade III and was upgraded to Grade II status the following year.
In 1996 the event was renamed to the Oak Tree Mile Handicap and at the same time was downgraded to Grade III. Between 1996 and 2006 the event had Breeders' Cup incentives which reflected in the name of the event. In 2003 the event was upgraded back to Grade II.
In 2013 the name of the event was changed to the City of Hope Stakes in honor of the cancer treatment center in Los Angeles.
In 2017 the event was run as a Black Type event with a much lower purse as the Obviously Mile Stakes. The Irish bred Obviously won this event in 2012 when it was run as the Arroyo Seco Stakes and was fourth in 2013 and was third in 2016.

## Records

Time record:
* 1:31.84 – No Jet Lag (2013)
Margins:
* 4 lengths - Double Feint (1987), Urgent Request (IRE) (1996)
Most wins:
* 2 – Mo Forza (2020, 2021)
Most wins by an owner:
* 2 – Bardy Farm & OG Boss (2020, 2021)
Most wins by a jockey:
* 4 – Gary Stevens (1986, 1988, 2000, 2018)
Most wins by a trainer:
* 6 – Neil D. Drysdale (1989, 1998, 2000, 2004, 2006, 2010)

## Winners

| Year | Winner | Age | Jockey | Trainer | Owner | Distance | Time | Purse | Grade |
| At Santa Anita Park – City of Hope Mile Stakes |||||||||||
| 2024 | Johannes | 4 | Umberto Rispoli | Tim Yakteen | Cuyathy | 1 mile | 1:32.45 | $201,500 | II |
| 2023 | Hong Kong Harry (IRE) | 6 | Juan J. Hernandez | Phillip D'Amato | Scott Anastasi, Jimmy Ukegawa & Tony Valazza | 1 mile | 1:33.77 | $202,000 | II |
| 2022 | Beyond Brilliant | 4 | Victor Espinoza | John Shirreffs | C R K Stable | 1 mile | 1:32.61 | $200,500 | II |
| 2021 | Mo Forza | 5 | Flavien Prat | Peter L. Miller | Bardy Farm & OG Boss | 1 mile | 1:32.45 | $200,000 | II |
| 2020 | Mo Forza | 4 | Flavien Prat | Peter L. Miller | Bardy Farm & OG Boss | 1 mile | 1:32.09 | $201,000 | II |
| 2019 | True Valour (IRE) | 5 | Drayden Van Dyke | Simon Callaghan | Qatar Racing Limited | 1 mile | 1:32.82 | $202,106 | II |
| 2018 | Sharp Samurai | 4 | Gary L. Stevens | Mark Glatt | Red Baron's Barn, Rancho Temescal & Mark Glatt | 1 mile | 1:32.47 | $201,380 | II |
| Obviously Mile Stakes |||||||||||
| 2017 | Blackjackcat | 4 | Kent J. Desormeaux | Mark Glatt | Al & Saundra Kirkwood | 1 mile | 1:33.70 | $79,695 | |
| City of Hope Mile Stakes |||||||||||
| 2016 | Vyjack | 6 | Flavien Prat | Philip D'Amato | Pick Six Racing | 1 mile | 1:31.69 | $201,725 | II |
| 2015 | Alert Bay | 4 | Martin Garcia | Blaine D. Wright | Peter Redekop B. C. | 1 mile | 1:33.58 | $200,750 | II |
| 2014 | Big Bane Theory | 5 | Joseph Talamo | Carla Gaines | Scott Gross & Mark Devereaux | 1 mile | 1:32.38 | $201,500 | II |
| 2013 | No Jet Lag | 3 | Mike E. Smith | Simon Callaghan | Anthony Ramsden | 1 mile | 1:31.84 | $150,750 | II |
| Arroyo Seco Mile Stakes |||||||||||
| 2012 | Obviously (IRE) | 4 | Joseph Talamo | Mike R. Mitchell | Anthony Fanticola & Joseph Scardino | 1 mile | 1:31.95 | $150,000 | II |
| Oak Tree Mile Stakes |||||||||||
| 2011 | Jeranimo | 5 | Martin Garcia | Michael Pender | Robert J. Wright | 1 mile | 1:32.61 | $150,000 | II |
| At Hollywood Park – Oak Tree Mile Stakes |||||||||||
| 2010 | Liberian Freighter | 5 | Martin Garcia | Neil D. Drysdale | Shawn L. Dugan, King Edward Racing Stable & Charles N. Winner | 1 mile | 1:33.24 | $150,000 | II |
| At Santa Anita Park – Oak Tree Mile Stakes |||||||||||
| 2009 | Cowboy Cal | 4 | Garrett K. Gomez | Todd A. Pletcher | Robert C. & Janice McNair | 1 mile | 1:33.12 | $150,000 | II |
| 2008 | Hyperbaric | 5 | Garrett K. Gomez | Julio C. Canani | Prestonwood Farm | 1 mile | 1:33.62 | $200,000 | II |
| 2007 | Out of Control (BRZ) | 4 | Michael C. Baze | Robert J. Frankel | T N T Stud | 1 mile | 1:34.16 | $252,000 | II |
| 2006 | Aragorn (IRE) | 4 | Corey Nakatani | Neil D. Drysdale | Ballygallon Stud | 1 mile | 1:32.87 | $249,000 | II |
| 2005 | Singletary | 5 | David R. Flores | Don Chatlos | Little Red Feather Racing | 1 mile | 1:34.54 | $249,000 | II |
| 2004 | Musical Chimes | 4 | Kent J. Desormeaux | Neil D. Drysdale | Sheik Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum | 1 mile | 1:33.29 | $246,000 | II |
| 2003 | Designed for Luck | 6 | Pat Valenzuela | Vladimir Cerin | David & Holly Wilson | 1 mile | 1:32.61 | $300,000 | II |
| 2002 | Night Patrol | 6 | Jose Valdivia Jr. | Nick Canani | Everest Stables | 1 mile | 1:32.93 | $234,000 | II |
| 2001 | Val Royal (FR) | 5 | Jose Valdivia Jr. | Julio C. Canani | David S. Milch | 1 mile | 1:33.21 | $219,000 | II |
| 2000 | War Chant | 3 | Gary L. Stevens | Neil D. Drysdale | Irving & Marjorie Cowan | 1 mile | 1:33.75 | $249,000 | II |
| 1999 | Silic (FR) | 4 | Corey Nakatani | Julio C. Canani | Terrence Lanni, Ken Poslosky, Bernard C. Schiappa, et al | 1 mile | 1:33.76 | $200,000 | III |
| Oak Tree Mile Handicap |||||||||||
| 1998 | Hawksley Hill (IRE) | 5 | Alex O. Solis | Neil D. Drysdale | David & Jill Heerensperger | 1 mile | 1:36.72 | $274,000 | III |
| 1997 | Fantastic Fellow | 3 | Alex O. Solis | D. Wayne Lukas | The Thoroughbred Corporation | 1 mile | 1:36.23 | $200,000 | III |
| 1996 | Urgent Request (IRE) | 6 | Chris McCarron | Charles E. Whittingham | Stewart Aitken | 1 mile | 1:32.44 | $180,300 | III |
| Colonel F. W. Koester Handicap |||||||||||
| 1995 | Ventiquattrofogli (IRE) | 5 | Goncalino Almeida | Wallace Dollase | Bonilla, Carr & Horizon Stable | 1 mile | 1:35.30 | $133,100 | II |
| 1994 | Bon Point (GB) | 4 | Eddie Delahoussaye | Robert J. Frankel | Juddmonte Farms | 1 mile | 1:33.86 | $107,050 | II |
| 1993 | Johann Quatz (FR) | 4 | Eddie Delahoussaye | Ron McAnally | Tadahiro Hotehama | 1 mile | 1:36.28 | $107,350 | II |
| 1992 | Twilight Agenda | 6 | Chris McCarron | D. Wayne Lukas | Moyglare Stud | 1 mile | 1:33.36 | $110,300 | II |
| 1991 | Ibero (ARG) | 4 | Alex O. Solis | Ron McAnally | Ivan Pavlovsky & Frank Whitham | 1 mile | 1:33.77 | $112,000 | II |
| 1990 | Notorious Pleasure | 4 | Laffit Pincay Jr. | Hector O. Palma | Robert, Karen, Marc, Michael & Richard Levy | 1 mile | 1:33.00 | $113,700 | II |
| 1989 | Political Ambition | 5 | Eddie Delahoussaye | Neil D. Drysdale | Clover Racing Stable (lessee), Kinkade, Wolfe, et al | 1 mile | 1:33.40 | $112,800 | III |
| 1988 | Mohamed Abdu (IRE) | 4 | Gary L. Stevens | Richard W. Mulhall | Meyer & Molly Gaskin Trust – Markovic | 1 mile | 1:34.40 | $110,550 | |
| 1987 | Double Feint | 4 | Fernando Toro | LeRoy Jolley | Peter M. Brant | 1 mile | 1:37.00 | $107,200 | |
| 1986 | Palace Music | 5 | Gary L. Stevens | Charles E. Whittingham | Nelson Bunker Hunt & Allen E. Paulson | 1 mile | 1:35.00 | $82,300 | |
Legend:
 Turf