The $1 million Pennsylvania Derby is the final major stakes race on dirt restricted to 3-year-olds in 2026, and this year’s 46th edition Sept. 19 at Parx Racing drew a very competitive 11-horse field vying for a share of the race’s lucrative purse.
In a display of sheer determination, a trait that earned him the 2025 Eclipse Award for champion turf male, Notable Speech returned to Woodbine Sept. 12 and won the Grade 1 Woodbine Mile Stakes for a second consecutive year.
Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert believed that Salahudin, his favorite for the $300,000 Grade 3 Iroquois Stakes, would appreciate stretching out to a mile and every inch of the long Churchill Downs stretch. That statement turned out to be prophetic.
Sixteen years ago, horse racing was at one of its periodic upticks in national exposure as fans were drawn to the exploits of an unbeaten star racemare based in Southern California, and by the time the 27th Breeders’ Cup World Championships arrived at Churchill Downs, excitement was at a fever pitch.
